Self-Regulated Learning Diary Interventions and the Implications for Health Professions Education

Background. There is increasing interest in the application of self-regulated learning (SRL) to improve academic and clinical performance in health professions education. SRL-learning diary (SRL-LD) interventions have become popular in non-health professions contexts to develop students’ SRL and academic performance. The aim of this systematic review was to identify how SRL-LD interventions have been used in health and non-health professions education, with the intention to provide insights into their use and to inform future implementation and research in health professions education. Methods. Electronic search in ERIC, ProQuest, PubMed, Scopus, Embase, and Web of Science was conducted. Two authors independently selected studies based on inclusion criteria and all selected studies were analyzed using a predetermined framework. Results. Of the identified 986 studies, 23 were selected for the review. Most studies were conducted in higher education within a domain-specific context, with only one study in health professions education. Most were justification studies. Five types of intervention were identified (Diary + SRL instruction, Diary + feedback, Diary + SRL instruction + feedback, Diary only, and SRL instruction only). Overall, the combination of a diary with explicit SRL instruction and/or feedback improved more SRL processes than diary only or SRL instruction only interventions. In studies reporting academic outcomes, there was also an improvement in 40% of studies. Conclusion. This systematic review highlights the potential usefulness of SRL-LD interventions in health professions education. Recommendations for implementation and future research are discussed.