Structural Model of Professional Socialization of Nursing Students With Clinical Practice Experience

This study developed a structural model of the professional socialization of nursing students with clinical practice experience and tested its validity based on Meleis's transition theory.

Participants were third- and fourth-year nursing students with at least one semester of clinical experience. Cross-sectional data from 412 participants were analyzed.

The goodness of fit of the model was satisfactory. Regarding the differences in educational year, the effects of the clinical learning environment on adaptation to a clinical practicum were not significant for third-year students but were significant for fourth-year students. The effects of clinical practice competency on professional socialization were significant only for fourth-year students. Transition shock and adaptation to clinical practicum paths were significant factors in both groups.

Clinical adaptation is important for developing professional socialization in nursing students. Clinical adaptation can be achieved by improving the clinical learning environment and facilitating the development of clinical practice competency. [J Nurs Educ. 2020;59(3):133-141.].