Latent profile analysis of nurses' moral courage: a professional values perspective

Area of Science:

• Nursing Ethics
• Healthcare Quality Improvement

Background:

• Nurses' moral courage (NMC) is crucial for enhancing patient care quality and safety.
• Professional values guide nurses in ethical adherence and preventing violations.
• Understanding NMC and its influencing factors is essential for improving nursing practice.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the current status of nurses' moral courage.
• To identify latent profiles of nurses' moral courage.
• To explore factors influencing moral courage from the perspective of professional values.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 966 nurses in a tertiary hospital in China.
• Data were collected using demographic information, the Chinese Nurses' Professional Values Scale-Revised Version (NPVS-R-CV), and the Nurses' Moral Courage Scale (NMCS).
• Latent profile analysis and multivariate logistic regression were used to analyze the data.

Main Results:

• Three distinct profiles of moral courage were identified: low (31.5%), medium (47.2%), and high (21.3%).
• A significant positive correlation was found between professional values and moral courage.
• Head nurses demonstrated significantly higher levels of moral courage (OR = 3.586, p = 0.013).

Conclusions:

• Nurses' moral courage can be categorized into three subgroups.
• Enhancing nurses' professional values is positively associated with increased moral courage.
• Interventions aimed at strengthening professional values may improve ethical behavior and patient outcomes in nursing.