Latent profile analysis of moral courage and coping style among nursing interns: a multicenter cross-sectional survey

Clinical practice is a necessary experience for nursing students to become qualified nurses. Nursing interns' moral courage is essential to taking a positive coping style and providing high-quality care. This study aimed to explore the current situation of moral courage and analyze its potential profiles and differences in coping styles among nursing interns.

In this cross-sectional descriptive study, a convenience sample of nursing interns (n = 1258) from 14 nursing schools in the three geographical areas of China was investigated. The Chinese version of the general information questionnaire, Nurses' Moral Courage Scale and Simplified Coping Style Questionnaire were used to collect data from March 15 to March 30, 2024. Analysis of latent profiles was applied to explore moral courage among nursing interns, and a t-test was used to analyze the differences in coping styles of different latent profiles.

The moral courage of nursing interns was at the medium level, and they preferred positive coping. The moral courage of nursing interns can be divided into two potential profiles, including the low moral courage group (64.47%) and the high moral courage group (35.53%). The negative coping scores of the low moral courage group were significantly higher than those of the high moral courage group (p<0.001), and the positive coping scores of the low moral courage group were significantly lower than those of the high moral courage group (p<0.001). The positive coping scores of female nursing interns was higher than male's (p = 0.020), their negative coping scores was lower than male's (p = 0.006). Nursing interns of different genders had different potential categories in moral courage, and both male and female in the high moral courage group were more inclined to positive coping styles than those in the low moral courage group (p = 0.012, p<0.001).

The moral courage of nursing interns exhibits heterogeneity and affects their coping style. Nursing educators can design corresponding educational countermeasures according to different profiles of nursing interns to enhance their moral courage, improve their coping strategies, and improve the overall quality of clinical practice.