If continuing medical education is to fuse into a continuum with undergraduate education, the medical schools and their faculty members must address the lifelong needs of practitioners by learning the philosophy and methods appropriate to effective adult education. (Author/LBH)

Presented is an example of behaviorally oriented evaluation research in continuing medical education and a discussion of aspects of the "value" of conventional learning formats for practicing physicians and their patients. (Author)

Preliminary data were gathered at the University of Iowa about learning styles and instructional preferences of two groups of family practice physicians: those who attended and those who did not attend a multidisciplinary university-sponsored refresher course. Implications for continuing medical education are discussed. (LBH)