Author Identifier (ORCID)
Abstract
Background: Professional Identity Formation (PIF) is a dynamic and context-dependent socialisation process; while existing research identifies various influencing factors, there is a paucity of cohesive frameworks that capture the stage-related internalisation of identity elements within practice. This gap is particularly salient in low-resource settings, such as China’s Rural-Streamed Medical Education Programme (RMEP), where substantial turnover and tenuous professional identity among trainees present significant challenges. Drawing upon the Ring Theory of Personhood (RToP) as a theoretical lens, this study aims to construct a dynamic framework for understanding PIF among RMEP trainees, thereby offering insights to enhance PIF for healthcare professionals in low-resource settings.
Method: Informed by a pragmatic paradigm, nine focus groups were conducted with 42 RMEP trainees across various training stages in China. Drawing upon the RToP as a sensitising concept, data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis to construct a dynamic framework.
Results: A framework comprising 11 themes was constructed across three dimensions: the Societal Domain, encompassing working conditions, policies, attitudes of others, formal teaching and discipline development; the Relational Domain, including relationships with role models, close ones, patients, and peers; and the Individual Domain, incorporating reflective experience, personal character and values. This framework emphasises the dynamic interaction of these themes and the stage-related shifts of PIF, highlighting a shift from external to internal elements while also acknowledging the prominent influence of early external experiences in low-resource settings.
Conclusions: By proposing a dynamic framework that maps PIF across different training stages, this study extends existing conceptualizations and provides valuable insights for strengthening it among healthcare professionals in low-resource settings.
Keywords
focus groups, general practitioners, low resource settings, medical education, professional identity formation
Document Type
Journal Article
Date of Publication
12-1-2026
Article Number
1428
E-ISSN
14726920
Volume
26
Issue
1
PubMed ID
42701181
Publication Title
BMC Medical Education
Publisher
Springer
School
School of Medical and Health Sciences
Funding Information
This study was supported by the Teaching Reform Project for “New Medical Sciences” (Notice on the Announcement of the 2023 Teaching Reform Project List by the Guangdong Provincial “New Medical Sciences” Construction Steering Committee-No. 126), the Teaching Reform and Research Project of Shantou University Medical College (SUMC [2025] No. SUMC-JG202529 and No. SUMC-JG202553), and the Medical Science and Technology Research Fund Project of Guangdong Province (A2023422).
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Chen, Y., Lin, P., Du, H., Wu, J., Zheng, X., Yao, M., & Lin, K. (2026). A dynamic framework of professional identity formation in trainees for low-resource settings: a qualitative study. BMC Medical Education, 26, Article 1428. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-026-10001-7