Lara Varpio

About

Lara Varpio, PhD, is a Professor of Pediatrics (Emergency Medicine) at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and serves as the Academic Co-Director of the Research Block in the Master's in Medical Education Program at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education. Her educational background includes a B.A. in English from McMaster University, an M.A. in Language and Professional Writing from the University of Waterloo, and a Ph.D. in English from the University of Waterloo. Her research focuses on professional identity formation, interprofessional collaboration, and medical education, with a particular interest in understanding how healthcare professionals develop their identities and work effectively within team settings. Dr. Varpio has contributed to the field through her work on metaphors in professional identity, the impact of shame on medical trainees, and the evolution of the graduate medical educator role, among other topics.

Research topics

• Psychology
• Psychotherapist
• Social psychology
• Sociology
• Medical education
• Medicine
• Epistemology

Selected publications

• Thematic analysis of qualitative data: AMEE Guide No. 131

  Medical Teacher · 2020-05-01 · 3647 citations

  articleSenior author

  Thematic analysis is a widely used, yet often misunderstood, method of qualitative data analysis. It is a useful and accessible tool for qualitative researchers, but confusion regarding the method’s philosophical underpinnings and imprecision in how it has been described have complicated its use and acceptance among researchers. In this Guide, we outline what thematic analysis is, positioning it in relation to other methods of qualitative analysis, and describe when it is appropriate to use the…

  PublisherDOI

• A practical guide to reflexivity in qualitative research: AMEE Guide No. 149

  Medical Teacher · 2022-04-07 · 1654 citations

  articleOpen access

  Qualitative research relies on nuanced judgements that require researcher reflexivity, yet reflexivity is often addressed superficially or overlooked completely during the research process. In this AMEE Guide, we define reflexivity as a set of continuous, collaborative, and multifaceted practices through which researchers self-consciously critique, appraise, and evaluate how their subjectivity and context influence the research processes. We frame reflexivity as a way to embrace and value resear…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• When words fail us: An integrative review of innovative elicitation techniques for qualitative interviews

  Medical Education · 2024-10-16 · 20 citations

  reviewOpen accessSenior author

  INTRODUCTION: Interviews are central to many qualitative studies in health professions education (HPE). However, researchers often struggle to elicit rich data and engage diverse participants who may find this strategy exclusionary. Elicitation techniques are strategies tailored to address these challenges, enhancing oral conversations through other forms of interaction-for example, participant photography and neighbourhood walks. These strategies are tailored to elicit the rich data needed to a…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Identity Work: A Qualitative Study of Residents’ Experiences Navigating Identity Struggles

  Perspectives on Medical Education · 2024-11-11 · 12 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Introduction: Medical training traditionally holds a deterministic view of professional socialization wherein many medical learners struggle to construct a professional identity. Previous research has demonstrated the dysfunctional norms and conflicting ideologies that create identity struggle, disproportionally affecting women and individuals underrepresented in medicine. Symbolic interactionism can help explain identity struggles, emphasizing the influence of socio-contextual factors on identi…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Professional Identity Formation Metaphors: Old Problems and New Promises

  Perspectives on Medical Education · 2025-01-01 · 10 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Introduction: While medical education scholars have made important contributions to our understanding of professional identity formation (PIF), some ways of thinking stubbornly endure despite being repudiated in the literature. We argue that two metaphors embedded in the PIF discourse contribute to obstructing change: PIF IS A JOURNEY and PIF INVOLVES FITTING INTO A MOLD. PIF IS A JOURNEY: This metaphor assumes that each learner's PIF work starts the day they enter medical school; that their pre…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Bridget C. O’Brien

  ORCID

  46 shared

• Meredith Young

  46 shared

• Susan Humphrey‐Murto

  University of Ottawa

  36 shared

• Sayra Cristancho

  Western University

  27 shared

• Pim W. Teunissen

  Maastricht School of Management

  26 shared

• Christen Rachul

  University of Manitoba

  26 shared

• Natasha Artemeva

  25 shared

• Karlen S Bader-Larsen

  25 shared

Education

• PhD, English

  University of Waterloo

Similar researchers at University of Pennsylvania

• John Q. Trojanowskih-296
• Craig B. Thompsonh-277
• Daniel J Raderh-236