Social Representations of Health Professionals regarding Learning and the Internet

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this article is to present the central core and the peripheral elements of social representations of doctors, nurses and dentists about learning with support from the internet. In the survey we used the technique of free evocation based on the structural approach. We inferred that the social representation of the subjects on the theme presents a framework which brings together elements positively assessed by the subjects themselves, and that are interconnected, observing consistency between the evoked elements. The elements that likely make up the central core identified by the terms “ease” and “practicality” demonstrate the functional and regulatory nature of the representation. In order to reverse a possible reduced use of technology, it is concluded that the topic of Internet usage should be included across the spectrum of disciplines that form the courses for the initial and ongoing training of health professionals.

Doctor; Nurse; Dentist; Social Representations; Internet; Learning