Perceptions of Clinical Stress in Baccalaureate Nursing Students

The Nursing Students' Clinical Stress Scale, a Likert-type survey by Whang (2002), translated from Korean into English, was used to identify perceptions of stress in baccalaureate nursing students. Data was collected from a convenience sample of baccalaureate nursing students at a Midwestern university. Students ranked their perceived stress level from clinical situations. One open-ended item asked students to describe their most stressful clinical experience. Rasch Model analysis/diagnostics were used to check the instrument for validity and reliability. Quantitative data were analyzed for descriptive statistics (means). Information from open-ended question was analyzed for themes. Qualitative themes were consistent with results from quantitative analysis and well-aligned with the literature. Students were stressed by incivility by healthcare staff and instructors, inconsistencies and time constraints. Research shows that stress can interfere with learning. It is imperative to determine causes of stress so educators can help decrease stress and improve student learning.