Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Beyond the tensions within transfer theories: implications for adaptive expertise in the health professions

  • Invited Paper
  • Published:
Advances in Health Sciences Education Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Ensuring trainees develop the flexibility with their knowledge to address novel problems, and to efficiently build upon prior knowledge to learn new knowledge is a common goal in health profession education. How trainees come to develop this capacity to transfer and transform knowledge across contexts can be described by adaptive expertise, which focuses on the ability of some experts to innovate upon their existing knowledge to develop novel solutions to novel problems. While adaptive expertise is often presented as an alternative framework to more traditional cognitivist and constructivist expertise models, it is unclear whether the non-routine and routine forms of transfer it describes are distinct from those described by other accounts of transfer. Furthermore, whether what (e.g., knowledge) is transferred and how (e.g., cognitive processes) differs between these views is still debated. In this review, we describe various theories of transfer and present a synthesis clarifying the relationship between transfer and adaptive expertise. Informed by our analysis, we argue that the mechanisms of transfer in adaptive expertise share important commonalities with traditional accounts of transfer, which when understood, can complement efforts by educators and researchers to foster and study adaptive expertise. We present three instructional principles that may better support transfer and adaptive expertise in trainees: i) identifying and incorporating meaningful variability in practice, ii) integrating conceptual knowledge during practice iii) using assessments of trainees’ transfer. Taken together, we offer an integrative perspective to how educational systems and experiences can be designed to develop and encourage adaptive expertise and transfer.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Aagesen, A. H., Jensen, R. D., Cheung, J. J. H., Christensen, J. B., Konge, L., Brydges, R., et al. (2020). The Benefits of Tying Yourself in Knots: Unraveling the Learning Mechanisms of Guided-Discovery Learning in an Open-Surgical Skills Course. Academic Medicine, Publish Ahead of Print. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000003646

  • Baghdady, M. T., Carnahan, H., Lam, E. W., & Woods, N. N. (2013). Integration of basic sciences and clinical sciences in oral radiology education for dental students. Journal of Dental Education, 77(6), 757–763.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baghdady, M. T., Pharoah, M. J., Regehr, G., Lam, E. W. N., & Woods, N. N. (2009). The role of basic sciences in diagnostic oral radiology. Journal of Dental Education, 73(10), 1187–1193.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barnett, S. M., & Ceci, S. J. (2002). When and where do we apply what we learn? A taxonomy for far transfer. Psychological Bulletin, 128(4), 612–637. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.128.4.612

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baroody, A. J., Feil, Y., & Johnson, A. R. (2007). An alternative reconceptualization of procedural and conceptual knowledge. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 38(2), 115–131. https://doi.org/10.2307/30034952

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bassok, M., & Holyoak, K. J. (1989). Interdomain transfer between isomorphic topics in algebra and physics. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 15(1), 153–166. https://doi.org/10.1037/0278-7393.15.1.153

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bohle Carbonell, K., Stalmeijer, R. E., Könings, K. D., Segers, M., & van Merriënboer, J. J. G. (2014). How experts deal with novel situations: A review of adaptive expertise. Educational Research Review, 12, 14–29. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2014.03.001

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bolander Laksov, K., Lonka, K., & Josephson, A. (2008). How do medical teachers address the problem of transfer? Advances in Health Sciences Education, 13(3), 345–360. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-006-9048-9

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bransford, J. D., & Schwartz, D. L. (1999). Rethinking transfer: A simple proposal with multiple implications. In A. Iran-Nejad & P. D. Pearson (Eds.), Review of Research in Education (Vol. 24, pp. 61–100). http://www.jstor.org/stable/1167267. Accessed 26 March 2014

  • Brydges, R., Fiume, A., & Grierson, L. (2022). Mastery versus invention learning: Impacts on future learning of simulated procedural skills. Advances in Health Sciences Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-022-10094-x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Busing, N., Rosenfield, J., Rungta, K., Raegele, M., Warren, A., Wright, B., et al. (2018). Smoothing the Transition Points in Canadian Medical Education. Academic Medicine, Publish Ahead of Print. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000002072

  • Castillo, J.-M., Park, Y. S., Harris, I., Cheung, J. J. H., Sood, L., Clark, M. D., et al. (2018). A critical narrative review of transfer of basic science knowledge in health professions education. Medical Education, 52(6), 592–604. https://doi.org/10.1111/medu.13519

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Catrambone, R., & Holyoak, K. J. (1989). Overcoming contextual limitations on problem-solving transfer. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 15(6), 1147–1156. https://doi.org/10.1037/0278-7393.15.6.1147

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chapman, R. (2021). Neurodiversity and the social ecology of mental functions. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 16(6), 1360–1372. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691620959833

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chaudhary, Z. K., Mylopoulos, M., Barnett, R., Sockalingam, S., Hawkins, M., O’Brien, J. D., & Woods, N. N. (2019). Reconsidering basic: Integrating social and behavioral sciences to support learning. Academic Medicine, Publish Ahead of Print. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000002907

  • Cheung, J. J. H., Kulasegaram, K. M., Woods, N. N., & Brydges, R. (2019). Why content and cognition matter: Integrating conceptual knowledge to support simulation-based procedural skills transfer. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 34(6), 969–977. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-019-04959-y

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cheung, J. J. H., Kulasegaram, K. M., Woods, N. N., & Brydges, R. (2021). Making concepts material: A randomized trial exploring simulation as a medium to enhance cognitive integration and transfer of learning. Simulation in Healthcare: THe Journal of the Society for Simulation in Healthcare, 16(6), 392–400. https://doi.org/10.1097/SIH.0000000000000543

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cheung, J. J. H., Kulasegaram, K. M., Woods, N. N., Moulton, C., Ringsted, C. V., & Brydges, R. (2017). Knowing how and knowing why: Testing the effect of instruction designed for cognitive integration on procedural skills transfer. Advances in Health Sciences Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-017-9774-1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chi, M. T. H., Feltovich, P. J., & Glaser, R. (1981). Categorization and representation of physics problems by experts and novices*. Cognitive Science, 5(2), 121–152. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15516709cog0502_2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cook, D. A., Sherbino, J., & Durning, S. J. (2018). Management reasoning: Beyond the diagnosis. JAMA. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2018.4385

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cook, D. A., Stephenson, C. R., Gruppen, L. D., & Durning, S. J. (2022). Management reasoning scripts: Qualitative exploration using simulated physician-patient encounters. Perspectives on Medical Education, 11(4), 196–206. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40037-022-00714-y

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Daneshfar, S., & Moharami, M. (2018). Dynamic assessment in Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory: Origins and main concepts. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 9(3), 600. https://doi.org/10.17507/jltr.0903.20

  • Day, S. B., & Goldstone, R. L. (2012). The import of knowledge export: connecting findings and theories of transfer of learning. Educational Psychologist, 47(3), 153–176. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2012.696438

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Detterman, D. K. (1993). The case for the prosecution: Transfer as an epiphenomenon. In D. K. Detterman & R. J. Sternberg (Eds.), Transfer on trial: Intelligence, cognition, and instruction (pp. 1–24). Ablex Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dreyfus, S. E., & Dreyfus, H. L. (1980). A five-stage model of the mental activities involved in directed skill acquisition. DTIC Document. http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA084551. Accessed 28 September 2016

  • Dumas, D., McNeish, D., Schreiber-Gregory, D., Durning, S. J., & Torre, D. M. (2019). Dynamic measurement in health professions education: rationale, application, and possibilities. Academic Medicine: Journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges, 94(9), 1323–1328. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000002729

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ertmer, P. A., & Newby, T. J. (2013). Behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism: comparing critical features from an instructional design perspective. Performance Improvement Quarterly, 26(2), 43–71. https://doi.org/10.1002/piq.21143

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eva, K. W., Neville, A. J., & Norman, G. R. (1998). Exploring the etiology of content specificity: Factors influencing analogic transfer and problem solving. Academic Medicine: Journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges, 73(10 Suppl), S1-5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Flexner, A., Updike, D. B., Pritchett, H. S., Carnegie foundation for the advancement of teaching, & Merrymount Press. (1910). Medical education in the United States and Canada: a report to the Carnegie foundation for the advancement of teaching.

  • Forsey, J., Ng, S., Rowland, P., Freeman, R., Li, C., & Woods, N. N. (2021). The basic science of patient-physician communication: A critical scoping review. Academic Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000004323

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greeno, J. G., Moore, J. L., & Smith, D. R. (1993). Transfer of situated learning. Transfer on trial: Intelligence, cognition, and instruction (pp. 99–167). Ablex Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hamstra, S. J., Brydges, R., Hatala, R., Zendejas, B., & Cook, D. A. (2014). Reconsidering fidelity in simulation-based training. Academic Medicine, 89(3), 387–392. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000000130

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hatala, R., Brooks, L., & Norman, G. R. (2003). Practice makes perfect: The critical role of mixed practice in the acquisition of ECG interpretation skills. Advances in Health Sciences Education, 8(1), 17–26. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022687404380

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hatano, G., & Inagaki, K. (1986). Two courses of expertise. In H. W. Stevenson, H. Azuma, & K. Hakuta (Eds.), Child development and education in Japan (pp. 262–272). W H Freeman/Times Books/ Henry Holt & Co.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hiebert, J., & Lefevre, P. (1986). Conceptual and procedural knowledge in mathematics: An introductory analysis. In Conceptual and procedural knowledge: The case of mathematics (pp. 1–27). Hillsdale, NJ, US: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kahneman, D. (2013). Thinking, fast and slow (1st ed.). Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kaufman, D. M., & Mann, K. V. (2010). Teaching and learning in medical education: How theory can inform practice. In T. Swanwick (Ed.), Understanding medical education (pp. 16–36). John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781444320282.ch2

  • Kirschner, P. A., Sweller, J., & Clark, R. E. (2006). Why minimal guidance during instruction does not work: An analysis of the failure of constructivist, discovery, problem-based, experiential, and inquiry-based teaching. Educational Psychologist, 41(2), 75–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kulasegaram, K. M. (2013, October). The effect of conceptual and contextual teaching strategies for the transfer of basic science knowledge in medical education (thesis). Retrieved from https://macsphere.mcmaster.ca/handle/11375/13457

  • Kulasegaram, K. M., Axelrod, D., Ringsted, C., & Brydges, R. (2018). Do one then see one: sequencing discovery learning and direct instruction for simulation-based technical skills training. Academic Medicine, 93(11S). https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000002378

  • Kulasegaram, K. M., Manzone, J. C., Ku, C., Skye, A., Wadey, V., & Woods, N. N. (2015a). Cause and effect: Testing a mechanism and method for the cognitive integration of basic science. Academic Medicine, 90, S63–S69. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000000896

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kulasegaram, K. M., Martimianakis, M. A., Mylopoulos, M., Whitehead, C. R., & Woods, N. N. (2013). Cognition before curriculum: Rethinking the integration of basic science and clinical learning. Academic Medicine, 88(10), 1578–1585. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0b013e3182a45def

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kulasegaram, K. M., Min, C., Ames, K., Howey, E., Neville, A., & Norman, G. R. (2012). The effect of conceptual and contextual familiarity on transfer performance. Advances in Health Sciences Education, 17(4), 489–499. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-011-9326-z

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kulasegaram, K. M., Min, C., Howey, E., Neville, A., Woods, N., Dore, K., & Norman, G. R. (2015b). The mediating effect of context variation in mixed practice for transfer of basic science. Advances in Health Sciences Education, 20(4), 953–968. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-014-9574-9

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Larsen, D. P., Butler, A. C., & Roediger, H. L., III. (2008). Test-enhanced learning in medical education. Medical Education, 42(10), 959–966. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2923.2008.03124.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lisk, K., Agur, A. M. R., & Woods, N. N. (2016). Exploring cognitive integration of basic science and its effect on diagnostic reasoning in novices. Perspectives on Medical Education, 5(3), 147–153. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40037-016-0268-2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lobato, J. (2006). Alternative perspectives on the transfer of learning: History, issues, and challenges for future research. The Journal of the Learning Sciences, 15(4), 431–449.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mayer, R. E. (2004). Should there be a three-strikes rule against pure discovery learning? American Psychologist, 59(1), 14–19. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.59.1.14

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McConnell, M. M., & Eva, K. W. (2012). The role of emotion in the learning and transfer of clinical skills and knowledge. Academic Medicine, 87(10), 1316–1322. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0b013e3182675af2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McConnell, M. M., Monteiro, S., Pottruff, M. M., Neville, A., Norman, G. R., Eva, K. W., & Kulasegaram, K. M. (2016). The impact of emotion on learners’ application of basic science principles to novel problems. Academic Medicine, 91, S58–S63. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000001360

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McConnell, M. M., St-Onge, C., & Young, M. E. (2015). The benefits of testing for learning on later performance. Advances in Health Sciences Education, 20(2), 305–320. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-014-9529-1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McDaniel, M. A., Roediger, H. L., & McDermott, K. B. (2007). Generalizing test-enhanced learning from the laboratory to the classroom. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 14(2), 200–206.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McDermott, R., Fowler, J. H., & Smirnov, O. (2008). On the evolutionary origin of prospect theory preferences. The Journal of Politics, 70(2), 335–350. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022381608080341

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McKenna, A. F. (2014). Adaptive expertise and knowledge fluency in design and innovation. In A. Johri & B. M. Olds (Eds.), Cambridge handbook of engineering education research (pp. 227–242). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139013451.016

  • Monteiro, S., Sherbino, J., Sibbald, M., & Norman, G. R. (2020). Critical thinking, biases and dual processing: The enduring myth of generalisable skills. Medical Education, 54(1), 66–73. https://doi.org/10.1111/medu.13872

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moulton, C. E., Regehr, G., Mylopoulos, M., & MacRae, H. M. (2007). Slowing down when you should: A new model of expert judgment. Academic Medicine, 82(10), S109–S116.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mylopoulos, M., Brydges, R., Woods, N. N., Manzone, J., & Schwartz, D. L. (2016). Preparation for future learning: A missing competency in health professions education? Medical Education, 50(1), 115–123. https://doi.org/10.1111/medu.12893

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mylopoulos, M., & Farhat, W. (2014). “I can do better”: Exploring purposeful improvement in daily clinical work. Advances in Health Sciences Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-014-9533-5

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mylopoulos, M., Kulasegaram, K. M., & Woods, N. N. (2018a). Developing the experts we need: Fostering adaptive expertise through education. Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice, 24(3), 674–677. https://doi.org/10.1111/jep.12905

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mylopoulos, M., Lohfeld, L., Norman, G. R., Dhaliwal, G., & Eva, K. W. (2012). Renowned physicians’ perceptions of expert diagnostic practice. Academic Medicine, 87(10), 1413–1417. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0b013e31826735fc

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mylopoulos, M., Steenhof, N., Kaushal, A., & Woods, N. N. (2018b). Twelve tips for designing curricula that support the development of adaptive expertise. Medical Teacher. https://doi.org/10.1080/0142159X.2018.1484082

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mylopoulos, M., & Woods, N. (2014). Preparing medical students for future learning using basic science instruction. Medical Education, 48(7), 667–673. https://doi.org/10.1111/medu.12426

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Naismith, L. M., Cheung, J. J. H., Sibbald, M., Tavares, W., Cavalcanti, R. B., Haji, F. A., & Fraser, K. L. (2019). Chapter 10—Using cognitive load theory to optimize simulation design. In G. Chiniara (Ed.), Clinical simulation (Second Edition) (pp. 129–141). Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-815657-5.00010-3

  • Nastos, S., & Rangachari, P. K. (2016). Beyond the single answer: A process-oriented exam for science students. FEMS Microbiology Letters, 363(16), fnw176. https://doi.org/10.1093/femsle/fnw176

  • National Research Council. (2000). How experts differ from novices. In How people learn: brain, mind, experience, and school: Expanded edition (pp. 31–50). Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press. http://www.nap.edu/catalog/9853. Accessed 27 May 2020

  • Newell, A., & Simon, H. A. (1972). Human problem solving (Reprint ed. edition.). Brattleboro, Vermont: Echo Point Books & Media.

  • Norman, G. R., Eva, K., Brooks, L., & Hamstra, S. (2006b). Expertise in medicine and surgery. In K. A. Ericsson, N. Charness, P. J. Feltovich, & R. R. Hoffman (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of expertise and expert performance (pp. 357–372). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511816796

  • Norman, G. R. (2009). Teaching basic science to optimize transfer. Medical Teacher, 31(9), 807–811. https://doi.org/10.1080/01421590903049814

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Norman, G. R., Bordage, G., Page, G., & Keane, D. (2006a). How specific is case specificity? Medical Education, 40(7), 618–623. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2929.2006.02511.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Norman, G. R., Dore, K., & Grierson, L. (2012). The minimal relationship between simulation fidelity and transfer of learning. Medical Education, 46(7), 636–647. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2923.2012.04243.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Norman, G. R., Dore, K., Krebs, J., & Neville, A. J. (2007). The power of the plural: Effect of conceptual analogies on successful transfer. Academic Medicine, 82(10), S16–S18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Norman, G. R., & Schmidt, H. G. (2000). Effectiveness of problem-based learning curricula: Theory, practice and paper darts. Medical Education, 34(9), 721–728.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pan, S. C., & Rickard, T. C. (2018). Transfer of test-enhanced learning: Meta-analytic review and synthesis. Psychological Bulletin, 144(7), 710–756. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000151

  • Pullman, L. E., Refaie, N., Lalumière, M. L., & Krupp, D. (2021). Is psychopathy a mental disorder or an adaptation? Evidence from a meta-analysis of the association between psychopathy and handedness. Evolutionary Psychology, 19(4), 14747049211040448. https://doi.org/10.1177/14747049211040447

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rikers, R. M. J. P., Loyens, S., te Winkel, W., Schmidt, H. G., & Sins, P. H. M. (2005). The role of biomedical knowledge in clinical reasoning: A lexical decision study. Academic Medicine, 80(10), 945–949. https://doi.org/10.1097/00001888-200510000-00015

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ryan, A., Judd, T., Swanson, D., Larsen, D. P., Elliott, S., Tzanetos, K., & Kulasegaram, K. M. (2020). Beyond right or wrong: More effective feedback for formative multiple-choice tests. Perspectives on Medical Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40037-020-00606-z

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schwartz, D. L., Bransford, J. D., & Sears, D. (2005). Efficiency and innovation in transfer. In Transfer of learning from a modern multidisciplinary perspective (pp. 1–52). Greenwich, CT: Information Age Publishing. http://ejournal.narotama.ac.id/files/Efficiency%20and%20innovation%20in%20transfer.pdf. Accessed 26 March 2014

  • Schwartz, D. L., Lindgren, R., & Lewis, S. (2009). Constructivism in an age of non-constructivist assessments. In Constructivist instruction: Success or failure? (pp. 34–61). New York, NY, US: Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group.

  • Schwartz, D. L., & Bransford, J. D. (1998). A time for telling. Cognition and Instruction, 16(4), 475–522. https://doi.org/10.1207/s1532690xci1604_4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schwartz, D. L., Chase, C. C., & Bransford, J. D. (2012). Resisting overzealous transfer: Coordinating previously successful routines with needs for new learning. Educational Psychologist, 47(3), 204–214. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2012.696317

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, E. M., Ford, J. K., & Kozlowski, S. W. J. (1997). Building adaptive expertise: Implications for training design strategies. In M. A. Quiñones & A. Ehrenstein (Eds.), Training for a rapidly changing workplace: Applications of psychological research. (pp. 89–118). Washington: American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/10260-004

  • Steenhof, N., Woods, N. N., Van Gerven, P. W. M., & Mylopoulos, M. (2019). Productive failure as an instructional approach to promote future learning. Advances in Health Sciences Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-019-09895-4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, K., & Rohrer, D. (2010). The effects of interleaved practice. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 24(6), 837–848. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.1598

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Teteris, E., Fraser, K., Wright, B., & McLaughlin, K. (2012). Does training learners on simulators benefit real patients? Advances in Health Sciences Education, 17(1), 137–144. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-011-9304-5

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thorndike, E. L., & Woodsworth, R. S. (1901). The influence of improvement in one mental function upon the efficiency of other functions: III. Functions involving attention, observation and discrimination. Psychological Review, 8(6), 553–564. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0071363

  • Thorndike, E. L. (1923). The influence of first-year latin upon ability to read english. School & Society, 17, 165–168.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weiner, S. J. (2022). Contextualizing care: An essential and measurable clinical competency. Patient Education and Counseling, 105(3), 594–598. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2021.06.016

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Willingham, D. T. (2013). Cognition: The thinking animal. Place of publication not identified.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, C. A., Davidson, J., Chahine, S., Chan, E. P., Stringer, L., Quantz, M. A., et al. (2022). What is transferred and how much is retained? A simulation study of complex surgical skills. Journal of Surgical Research, 280, 411–420. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jss.2022.07.040

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Woods, N. N. (2007). Science is fundamental: The role of biomedical knowledge in clinical reasoning: Clinical expertise. Medical Education, 41(12), 1173–1177. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2923.2007.02911.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Woods, N. N., Brooks, L. R., & Norman, G. R. (2007). The role of biomedical knowledge in diagnosis of difficult clinical cases. Advances in Health Sciences Education, 12(4), 417–426. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-006-9054-y

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Woods, N. N., Neville, A. J., Levinson, A. J., Howey, E. H., Oczkowski, W. J., & Norman, G. R. (2006). The value of basic science in clinical diagnosis. Academic Medicine, 81(10), S124–S127.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Education, University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago, 808 South Wood Street, 966 CMET MC 591, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA

    Jeffrey J. H. Cheung

  2. Department of Community and Family Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Kulamakan M. Kulasegaram

  3. The Wilson Centre, The Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Kulamakan M. Kulasegaram

Authors
  1. Jeffrey J. H. Cheung
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Kulamakan M. Kulasegaram
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jeffrey J. H. Cheung.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Cheung, J.J.H., Kulasegaram, K.M. Beyond the tensions within transfer theories: implications for adaptive expertise in the health professions. Adv in Health Sci Educ 27, 1293–1315 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-022-10174-y

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-022-10174-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation