Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 18, 2026
The Resident-intruder Paradigm: A Standardized Test for Aggression, Violence and Social Stress
Published on: July 4, 2013
Student nurses' de-escalation of patient aggression: a pretest-posttest intervention study
Johannes Nau1, Ruud Halfens, Ian Needham
1Institut für Medizin-, Pflegepädagogik und Pflegewissenschaft (Department of the Education of Nurse and Paramedic Teachers and Nursing Science), Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Augustenburger Platz 1, 13353 Berlin, Germany. nau@ebz-pflege.de
Background:
Experts recommend staff training to prevent and manage aggressive situations involving patients or their relatives. However, in many countries this subject is not covered in pre-registration nursing education. In addition, the evidence regarding its impact on practical placements remains weak.
Objective:
This study examines the influence of an aggression management training programme for nursing students on their performance in de-escalating aggressive patients.
Design:
Pretest-posttest within-and-between-groups design.
Setting:
A School of Nursing in Germany.
Participants:
Convenience sample out of six classes of nursing students at differing educational levels (10th to 28th month of nursing education, n=78, mean age=22).
Methods:
In a cross-sectional and longitudinal two groups before and after design nursing students encountered two scenarios (A or B) with simulation patients. After completing the training, each student was confronted with the unknown other scenario. De-escalation experts from three German-speaking countries evaluated 156 video scenes using the De-escalating Aggressive Behaviour Scale (DABS), not knowing whether the videos had been recorded before or after the training. Mean values and statistical significance tests were computed to compare the results.
Results:
The performance levels of students who had been trained rose significantly from 2.74 to 3.65 as measured by the DABS on a 5-point Likert scale (Wilcoxon test p<.001). The trained students managed scenario A significantly better than the untrained students (untrained 2.50, trained 3.70; Mann-Whitney-U-test p<.001,). Similar results were found for scenario B (untrained 3.01, trained 3.61; Mann-Whitney-U-test p<.001). No significant differences were found in the pretest results irrespective the students' age or duration of previous nursing education.
Conclusions:
Aggression management training is able to improve nursing students' performance in de-escalating aggressive behaviour. A maturation-effect on the de-escalating performance due to general nursing education or age is unlikely.
Related Concept Videos
01:15Nursing Evaluation
Section...
03:20The Stanford Prison Experiment
01:20Sputum Studies II: Culture and Sensitivity
Sputum culture and sensitivity is a medical procedure used to diagnose bacterial infections in the respiratory tract and select the most appropriate antibiotics for treatment. This process involves analyzing sputum samples of thick and opaque secretions produced in the lungs and airways. These samples are collected from patients and then sent to the laboratory for analysis.
The test can identify various pathogens responsible for respiratory infections, including Streptococcus,...
01:08Obedience
01:15Nursing Implementation
The five steps to implementing effective nursing care include reassessing the patient, reviewing and revising the existing nursing care plan, organizing the resources and care delivery, anticipating and preventing complications, and implementing nursing interventions.