A Criticism of Psychiatry's Board Examinations
ALAN L. MORGENSTERN M.D.1
1 Associate professor of psychiatry, University of Oregon Medical School, 3181 S. W. Sam Jackson Park Rd., Portland, Ore. 97201
The author questions the efficacy of the Board examinations in identifying "safe professional competency." The lack of helpful feedback from the examinations, the uncertainty about the behaviors that contribute to competence in clinical practice, the artificial stresses related to a day of testing—these and other issues raise doubts about the current relevance of certifying examinations. In the contemporary atmosphere of reevaluation of American educational premises and practices, the author suggests, it may be wise to reexamine the goals and functions of the Board.
