Gender differences in the self-assessment of surgical residents

Background: Despite equivalent performance as assessed by objective external measures, women tend to underestimate their abilities compared with their male counterparts. Methods: The difference in ordinal values from faculty and resident self-evaluations was calculated for each general and plastic surgery resident. Objective external performance measures were compared for female and male residents. Results: Male and female residents performed equivalently. All residents underestimated their abilities compared with faculty assessment; however, general surgery residents did so to a greater degree (P < .05). Female residents demonstrated a greater degree of underestimation than did their male colleagues; however, this was not statistically significant. Conclusions: Although female resident surgeons are generally confident in their abilities, this may be in contrast to the self-perception of many female medical students. Consideration of gender differences in self-perception may be important when providing feedback to female students and residents.