The Making of a Psychiatrist: The Resident's View of the Process of His Professional Development

The author reports his findings from interviews with a class of psychiatric residents. He concludes that for the resident, the role that residency training plays in the process of his professional development is very much a function of the types of relationships he is able to form with people in the institute (teachers, supervisors, fellow residents). Where the opportunity exists for an active mutual educational alliance, he experiences professional growth, maturation, and individuation. Where it does not, he is likely to stagnate.