Table 5.
Comparison of Perceptions of Pathology as a Medical Specialty for Those Respondents Who Considered Pathology as a Career Choice Versus Those Who Did Not.
| Please rate your level of agreement with each of the following statements about pathology | Pathology considered | Pathology not considered | Significance* | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N | Mean | Top box† % | N | Mean | Top box† % | ||
| Pathology is a highly regarded specialty | 90 | 3.17 | 41% | 222 | 2.89 | 25% | t(310) = 2.449, P = .02 |
| Pathology offers the flexibility to work part-time | 77 | 4.18 | 92% | 163 | 4.08 | 90% | t(238) = 1.178, P = .24 |
| Pathologists have good work–life balance | 87 | 4.33 | 95% | 177 | 4.21 | 91% | t(262) = 1.632, P = .10 |
| Pathologists have good income potential | 79 | 3.75 | 72% | 140 | 3.75 | 73% | t(217) = −.028, P = .98 |
| The average pathologist spends the majority of his/her time performing autopsies | 84 | 1.69 | 0% | 177 | 1.89 | 3% | t(259) = −2.367, P = .02 |
| Pathology has limited opportunities for direct patient contact compared to other specialties | 91 | 4.07 | 88% | 231 | 4.24 | 92% | t(320) = −1.934, P = .05 |
| Pathologists are introverts | 89 | 2.98 | 29% | 223 | 3.22 | 43% | t(180.376) = −2.053, P = .04 |
| Pathology offers a satisfying degree of intellectual challenge | 91 | 4.45 | 95% | 220 | 4.13 | 85% | t(309) = 3.594, P < .001 |
| Pathology offers adequate scholarly and research opportunities | 85 | 4.64 | 96% | 221 | 4.42 | 95% | t(304) = 2.715, P = .01 |
| Pathology offers the opportunity to utilize new technologies | 88 | 4.39 | 92% | 213 | 4.25 | 88% | t(299) = 1.582, P = .12 |
* Significance was tested via independent samples t tests.
† Values in this column are the percent selecting strongly agree or agree.