Favorable Attitudes Toward Research in Nursing Students During Internship: A Cross-Sectional Study in Peru

Research attitudes among nursing students are essential to improve the quality of care and promote evidence-based practice. The objective of this study was to determine the attitude towards research of nursing students during their undergraduate internship and explore the demographic and study-related factors that may affect these attitudes.

In this cross-sectional retrospective study, 100 nursing interns who are >18 years old, currently studying and working, and have a prior academic background were included. To assess the attitudes toward research, the 43-item Likert-like Scale of Attitudes Towards Research questionnaire was used, which has been previously validated in the Peruvian population and includes three distinct dimensions: affective, cognitive, and behavioral.

The mean age was 28.7 ± 5.2 years and 88% were women. Fifty percent had favorable attitudes toward research. The favorable attitude according to the affective, cognitive, and behavioral dimensions was 28%, 11%, and 45%, respectively. Although the youngest age group (20 to 30 years old) had the highest frequency of favorable attitudes (36%), no significant differences were found when compared to other age groups (p = .082).

Nursing students presented favorable attitudes toward research during their undergraduate internship, especially among young students. However, more research is needed to understand how these attitudes are shaped and consolidated during the research process and how they can be further improved to promote evidence-based practice in nursing.