Understanding the mediated relationship between moral distress, depression, and suicide risk in undergraduate nursing
Cynthia P Paidipati1, Alicia J Lozano2, Jennifer West2
1Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL.
Background:
Nursing students are at higher risk for depression, suicide, and other mental health concerns as compared to the general college student population. Moral distress and other ethical issues may be a significant source of psychological harm within nursing student experiences and warrants further attention.
Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to understand the mediating effect of depression on the relationship between moral distress and suicide risk among undergraduate nursing students.
Methods:
This cross-sectional analysis was derived from a larger sequential mixed methods study. The first phase was an online survey completed by a national sample of N = 679 nursing students in the United States.
Findings:
The relationship between moral distress and suicide risk was fully mediated by depression and statistically significant at the alpha = 0.05 level.
Conclusion:
All three psychological variables (depression, moral distress, suicide risk) impact nursing students and require innovative solutions within nursing and educational programs.
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