OSTEOPATHIC MEDICAL STUDENT ACCEPTANCE OF EVOLUTION AND EXPOSURE TO CONCEPTS OF EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY

James M. Norton*, University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine, Biddeford, ME 04005 U.S.A.

PURPOSE: The incorporation of evolutionary medicine into medical curricula presupposes an acceptance of evolution among medical students. Since few studies exist that specifically address medical student opinions regarding human origins or their exposure to evolutionary biology, this study was undertaken.

METHODS: An online questionnaire was used to survey three classes of Osteopathic medical students regarding their acceptance of Darwinian evolution, their exposure to evolutionary biology prior to and during medical school, and their opinion about the relevance of evolutionary biology to medicine.

RESULTS: Of the 222 students completing the survey, 62.3% accept Darwinian evolution, 27.8% believe an intelligent force guided human evolution; and 9.9% believe that humans were directly created in their present form. The primary reasons given by students for rejecting evolution were contradictions in evolutionary theory, literal acceptance of a religious creation account, and/or the presence of alternative explanations for biological diversity. 68.2% of students indicated significant exposure to evolutionary biology concepts prior to medical school, primarily within botany, biology, ecology, or other similar courses. 36.5% of students recognized evolutionary concepts within their medical curriculum, primarily as evolutionary explanations for human structure and function within anatomy, physiology, and biochemistry courses. 41% of students thought evolutionary biology was highly relevant to medicine, whereas 25.3% felt evolutionary biology had little relevance to medicine.

CONCLUSIONS: Acceptance of Darwinian evolution is not universal among medical students. Students indicated greater exposure to evolutionary biology prior to medical school than during medical school. Not all students felt that evolutionary biology was relevant to medicine.