Life-Metaphors Among Colombian Medical Students: Uncovering Core Values and Educational Implications

The present study utilized metaphor analysis to examine the core values of Colombian medical students. The entire 9th semester medical class of 60 students was invited to respond to a structured questionnaire. It asked participants to state their preferred life-metaphor, whether they had always preferred this metaphor since childhood or adolescence, and if not, what had caused it to change; and how it guides their actions. Participants were also asked to indicate which 2 of 17 different life-metaphors they most and least preferred. The questionnaire was completed by 47 medical students. The most preferred metaphors were overwhelmingly: "Life is like a journey or voyage" and "Life is like an adventure," and least preferred were overwhelmingly: "Life is like a war" and "Life is like a penal colony or prison." Qualitatively, medical students' life-metaphors were predominantly active, individualistic, and affectively positive. Students reported that their life-metaphor significantly impacted their motivation and decision-making. The implications of metaphor analysis for medical education are highlighted, and future avenues for research are suggested.