Critical thinking in nursing students from two Brazilian regions

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Cognitive Science

Background:

• Critical thinking is essential for nursing practice.
• Developing critical thinking skills in undergraduate nursing students is a key educational objective.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze critical thinking and its cognitive components in undergraduate nursing students.
• To evaluate the impact of concept map creation on critical thinking development.
• To assess concept mapping as a teaching strategy in two Brazilian nursing programs.

Main Methods:

• A before-and-after experimental study with randomization was conducted.
• The study included 77 nursing students from two Brazilian universities.
• Data were collected using a sociodemographic questionnaire and the California Critical Thinking Skills Test, with intervention involving concept map creation.

Main Results:

• Overall critical thinking scores did not significantly differ between the groups.
• Positive improvements were observed in specific cognitive skills: evaluation, induction, and inference.
• The intervention demonstrated potential in fostering certain critical thinking attributes.

Conclusions:

• Concept mapping is a valid and facilitating teaching strategy for enhancing critical thinking in nursing students.
• The study highlights the utility of concept maps in developing specific cognitive skills relevant to nursing education.
• Further research can explore broader applications and long-term effects of this pedagogical approach.