Design thinking competence as self-perceived by nursing students in Taiwan: A cross-sectional study

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Design Thinking
• Innovation in Healthcare

Background:

• Design thinking is crucial for innovative problem-solving.
• Knowledge regarding nursing students' self-perceived design thinking competence is limited, especially in Taiwan.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the self-perceived design thinking competence of nursing students in Taiwan.

Main Methods:

• A descriptive, cross-sectional, quantitative study was conducted.
• 101 nursing students from a Taiwanese university participated.
• Data were collected via self-reported questionnaires on design thinking competence (Creative Synthesis Inventory, Design Thinking Traits Questionnaire) from January 2020 to January 2021.

Main Results:

• Significant individual differences in self-perceived design thinking competence were observed.
• Students reported higher creative synthesis skills in user discovery but lower optimism and persistence.
• Creative synthesis skills correlated positively with most design thinking traits, excluding optimism.

Conclusions:

• Individual differences in design thinking competence among Taiwanese nursing students highlight areas for improvement.
• Students perceive lower skills in visualization, prototyping, evaluation, and optimism.
• Nursing schools should implement training to enhance creative synthesis skills and designer traits, focusing on identified weaknesses.