Baccalaureate nursing students' identification with the women's movement

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Feminist Studies
• Social Psychology

Background:

• Attitudes towards nursing and feminism can be influenced by educational experiences.
• Understanding student perceptions is crucial for nursing program development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how nursing and non-nursing students' attitudes about themselves and the "typical nurse" evolve in relation to feminist movement goals.
• To compare attitudinal shifts between different student groups.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 291 completed questionnaires from nursing and non-nursing students.
• Quantitative assessment of self-perception and perception of the "typical nurse" using a feminist scale.

Main Results:

• Female nursing students demonstrated a significant positive shift in feminist attitudes towards themselves and the "typical nurse" as they progressed through their education.
• Male nursing students, non-nursing students, and females in non-nursing majors reported lower scores on the feminist scale compared to female nursing students.

Conclusions:

• Nursing education appears to foster more feminist-aligned attitudes among female students.
• The nursing profession, particularly for women, may be influenced by feminist principles, impacting self-perception and professional identity.