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Moral integrity and moral courage: can you teach it?
Ruth A Eby1, Patricia Lynn Hartley, Patricia Jeanne Hodges
1Indiana Wesleyan University School of Nursing, Marion, IN, USA. ruth.eby@indwes.edu
The Journal of Nursing Education
|March 9, 2013
Summary
Nursing faculty perceive growing moral integrity challenges. Strategies must focus on fostering student beliefs to promote moral integrity and courage in academic settings.
Area of Science:
- Nursing Education
- Bioethics
- Moral Psychology
Background:
- Moral integrity issues are increasing in nursing practice and education.
- Previous research highlights challenges but lacks focus on specific academic strategies.
- Ethical scandals in other professions underscore the importance of integrity in nursing.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate faculty perceptions of challenges to moral integrity in nursing academia.
- Identify strategies to promote moral integrity and moral courage in nursing students.
- Explore the relationship between beliefs and moral behaviors in nursing students.
Main Methods:
- Content analysis of faculty responses to open-ended questions.
- Qualitative data analysis to identify themes related to challenges and strategies.
- Comparison of findings with existing literature on nursing ethics.
Main Results:
- Identified themes in faculty and student beliefs and behaviors align with current literature.
- Essential strategies include instructors modeling integrity and fostering high-integrity learning environments.
- A key finding is that beliefs are the primary drivers of moral behaviors, requiring targeted interventions.
Conclusions:
- Nursing academia faces significant moral integrity challenges requiring urgent attention.
- Strategies should prioritize influencing student beliefs to enhance moral integrity and courage.
- Developing and integrating effective mechanisms to support student moral development is crucial.
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