Values of nursing students: a descriptive qualitative study

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Healthcare Ethics
• Psychology

Background:

• Personal and professional values are crucial for nursing students' development and high-quality patient care.
• Limited research exists on integrating these values or students' needs for values-based actions.
• The Acceptance and Commitment Approach offers a novel perspective for understanding nursing students' values.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore personal and professional values in final-year nursing students.
• To examine the relationship between personal and professional values.
• To identify students' needs for values-based actions using the Acceptance and Commitment Approach.

Main Methods:

• Descriptive qualitative design guided by the Acceptance and Commitment Approach.
• Semi-structured interviews with 20 final-year nursing students.
• Manual deductive thematic analysis of verbatim transcripts.

Main Results:

• Theme 1: Values encompassing personal (kindness, dignity) and professional (respect, advocacy) aspects, highlighting the importance of their harmony for a meaningful life.
• Theme 2: Needs for Values-Based Actions, including psychosocial (values clarification, stress management) and educational (feedback, role models) support.

Conclusions:

• Alignment of personal and professional values is vital for meaningful lives and quality patient care.
• Nursing students possess core values but require psychosocial and educational support for values-based actions.
• Integrating value-centered approaches into nursing curricula is essential for holistic, ethical, and patient-centered care.