‘Older people have lived their lives’: First year nursing students’ attitudes towards older people

Abstract Background. The efficient management of relational competences in healthcare professionals is crucial to ensure that a patient’s treatment and care process is conducted positively. Empathy is a major component of the relational skills expected of health professionals. Knowledge of undergraduate healthcare students’ empathic abilities is important for educators in designing specific and efficient educational programmes aimed at supporting or enhancing students’ empathic competences. In this study, we measured first-year undergraduate nursing students’ attitudes towards professional empathy in clinical encounters. The students’ motivations for entering nursing education were also evaluated. This study takes a multi-method approach based on the use of qualitative and quantitative tools to examine the association between students’ positive attitudes towards the value of empathy in health professionals and their prosocial and altruistic motivations in choosing to engage in nursing studies.Methods. A multi-method study was performed with 77 first-year nursing students. The Jefferson Scale of Empathy (JSE) – Health Professions Student Version was administered. Students’ motivations for choosing nursing studies were detected through an open question and thematically analysed. Using explorative and confirmative factor analyses, a dimension reduction was conducted to identify subjects with prosocial and altruistic motivations. Finally, linear models were tested to examine specific associations between motivation and empathy.Results. Seven distinct themes distinguishing internal and external motivational factors were identified through the thematic analysis of students’ answers regarding their choice of entering the nursing degree course. Female students gained higher scores on the empathy scale than their male counterparts. When students’ age was considered, this difference was shown only for younger students, with young females’ total scores being higher than those of young males. High empathy scores were positively associated with altruistic motivational factors. A negative correlation was found between external motivational factors and the scores of the Compassionate Care subscale of the JSE.Conclusions. Knowing the level of nursing students’ empathy and their motivational factors for entering nursing studies is important for educators in order to implement training paths that enhance students’ relational attitudes and skills and promote positive motivational aspects that are central to this profession.

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Taiwanese Nursing Students’ Attitudes Toward Older People

Journal of Gerontological Nursing ◽

10.3928/00989134-20090903-01 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 35 (11) ◽

pp. 50-55 ◽

Cited By ~ 21

Author(s):

I-Ju Pan ◽

Helen Edwards ◽

Anne Chang

Keyword(s):

Nursing Students ◽

Older People ◽

Students Attitudes

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A Pilot Study of a Creative Bonding Intervention to Promote Nursing Students' Attitudes towards Taking Care of Older People

Nursing Research and Practice ◽

10.1155/2011/537634 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 2011 ◽

pp. 1-6 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Ann R. Lamet ◽

Rosanne Sonshine ◽

Sandra M. Walsh ◽

David Molnar ◽

Sharon Rafalko

Keyword(s):

Nursing Students ◽

Older People ◽

Long Term Results ◽

Negative Attitudes ◽

Student Groups ◽

Willingness To Serve ◽

Quasi Experimental ◽

Students Attitudes ◽

Art Activities ◽

Self Transcendence

Although numbers of older people are increasing, nursing students have negative attitudes towards older people and do not plan to care for them following graduation. Multiple strategies have been implemented to reverse students' attitudes with mixed results. The purpose of this pilot quasi-experimental study was to test a Creative-Bonding Intervention (CBI) with students implementing art activities with older people to promote students' willingness to take care of them. Using a self-transcendence conceptual framework, control () and experimental () student groups were pre- and post-tested on attitudes toward older people, self-transcendence, and willingness to serve. The CBI improved attitudes towards older people with negative attitudes significantly changed () but with no significant differences on self-transcendence and willingness to serve. However, willingness to serve results approached significance (). The willingness measure (one question) should be expanded. Curricula changes that incorporate creative activities such as the CBI with larger and equal numbers in student groups and longitudinal follow up to determine long-term results after graduation are suggested.

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Factors associated with nursing students’ attitudes toward older people: a scoping review

Gerontology & Geriatrics Education ◽

10.1080/02701960.2021.2012466 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-20

Author(s):

Helen Venables ◽

Yvonne Wells ◽

Deirdre Fetherstonhaugh ◽

Heather Wallace

Keyword(s):

Nursing Students ◽

Older People ◽

Scoping Review ◽

Factors Associated ◽

Students Attitudes

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Swedish nursing students’ attitudes towards older people and working in care for older people

Nordisk Sygeplejeforskning ◽

10.18261/issn1892-2686-2012-03-05 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 2 (03) ◽

pp. 210-221

Author(s):

Birgitta Jöhnemark ◽

Ingegerd Fagerberg ◽

Gabriella Engström

Keyword(s):

Nursing Students ◽

Older People ◽

Students Attitudes ◽

Care For Older People

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A Qualitative Look at Leisure Benefits for Taiwanese Nursing Students

The Qualitative Report ◽

10.46743/2160-3715/2004.1906 ◽

2015 ◽

Author(s):

Shwu-Ching Hsieh ◽

Angela Spaulding ◽

Mark Riney

Keyword(s):

Nursing Students ◽

Leisure Activities ◽

Junior College ◽

Well Being ◽

First Year ◽

Leisure Participation ◽

Grounded Theory Method ◽

Research Findings ◽

Students Attitudes ◽

The Relationship

The purpose of this study was to determine attitudes of first year nursing students toward leisure participation at the Jen-Te Junior College of Medicine Nursing and Management in Miao-Li, Taiwan. The three research questions used for this study were: What types of leisure activities do first year nursing students at Jen-Te Junior College participate in?, what are the attitudes of first year nursing students at Jen-Te Junior College toward leisure?, and what is the relationship between leisure attitudes and leisure participation of first year nursing students in Jen-Te Junior College? The grounded theory method was used to generate the research findings. Five categories of students’ attitudes toward leisure emerged: social interaction, learning-seeking, psychological well-being, physical health and self-growth.

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