Implications of cognitive research for ambulatory care education

Research in cognitive psychology has led to changes in how educators conceptualize thinking and approach improving students' thinking processes. As medical education moves into ambulatory care settings, there is an opportunity for educators to consider the implications of cognition theories for the ambulatory care curriculum. In this paper, the author briefly explains four major concepts of cognitive theory-the importance of context; students' need for transferable knowledge; the importance of balancing depth and breadth of knowledge; and the role of prior knowledge in problem solving-and discusses the possible implications of each concept for ambulatory care education.