Critical thinking skill in Shiraz University of medical sciences students

Introduction: Critical thinking is a skill and capability on which learner can achieve teaching goals during an active mental process only after receiving key points from teacher. This capability can enhance subject remembrance by students and deliver them to training targets with clarity. One of the benefits of this skill is that it can widen thinking horizons of students over learned topics, that is reached by their active attendance in training processes. This study was aimed to determine the critical thinking situation of medical students and compare this in different clinical students. Methods: This study was done on 150 Shiraz University of medical students learning and practicing in 3 groups of Interns, externs and students. The subjects were selected with randomized stratified method. Then their critical thinking was investigated using California B questionnaire containing 34 questions. Results: The results showed overall weakness of Shiraz medical students in utilizing critical thinking skills. In this study inference ability of Interns got significantly better scores from others. Inference ability of male students was slightly higher than that in female students. Conclusion: The results showed this important fact that skills and abilities of Shiraz medical students did not improve by going to upper year of education. It is necessary for policymakers, planners and managers to provide appropriate facilities and a suitable education environment, especially in medical students, to strengthen their critical thinking.