The effect of debate-based nursing ethics education on the moral sensitivity and judgment of nursing students

Moral sensitivity and the ability to make ethical judgments are foundational competencies for ethical performance among nursing students. These two moral capabilities are not innate; rather, they must be cultivated through education. The effectiveness of teaching ethical concepts and employing suitable educational methods remains a topic of debate. This study aimed to assess the impact of debate-based nursing ethics training on the moral sensitivity and moral judgment of nursing students.

This study was conducted as a clinical trial involving 72 undergraduate nursing students. The participants were assigned to two groups: 37 students in the debate-based group and 35 in the lecture group. Demographic information, Lutzen moral sensitivity, and Rest moral judgment questionnaires were administered before the intervention and one month afterward. In the discussion group, students were divided into two subgroups of eighteen, with each subgroup participating in two 3-hour discussion sessions that addressed eleven scenarios focused on ethical challenges in nursing. In the lecture group, the session was conducted as a single four-hour lecture. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 16 software, employing paired and independent t-tests.

The two groups did not differ significantly in terms of demographic variables (P<0.05).Prior to the study two groups, the mean of moral sensitivity were (52.89±19.33) and (54.87±13.32). In addition, the first and third stories of moral judgment did not reveal a statistically significant difference (P<0.05). After the study, the moral sensitivity scores in the lecture group were (73.16±14.23), compared to (86.13±11.48) in the debate-based group. A statistically significant difference was observed in the mean moral judgment scores between the lecture and debate-based groups (P<0.001) CONCLUSION: Teaching nursing ethics through both debate-based and lecture-based methods can enhance the moral sensitivity and judgment of nursing students. However, the debate-based method appears to be more effective. Given the significance of learning the Iranian Code of Nursing Ethics, both methods-particularly the debate-based approach-should be employed based on the educational context and available resources.

This study was registered in the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials ( https://irct.behdasht.gov.ir ) on 2024-06-04, with the IRCT ID: IRCT20240215061016N2. ( https://irct.behdasht.gov.ir/trial/76848 ).