Clinical reasoning among "Post-00s" generation nursing students in China: A latent profile analysis

To examine the level and influencing factors of clinical reasoning among post-00s nursing students and to further identify latent profiles and compare factors across profiles.

The digital age presents a dual effect on health workers' clinical judgment. Clinical reasoning underpins and drives the process of clinical judgment. Born as digital natives, the distinctive characteristics of the clinical reasoning among the post-00s generation remain unclear and warrant further investigation.

A multi-center and cross-sectional survey.

During September to October 2022, data were collected from nursing students across 14 undergraduate nursing schools in Hunan province by Cluster sampling. Latent profile analysis was used to identify clinical reasoning profiles. R3STEP multinomial regression examined predictors of profile membership and linear regression analyzed factors associated with the total clinical reasoning score.

A total of 1165 questionnaires were completed, of which 877 were effectively received. Clinical reasoning scores were 3.19 ± 0.72. Internship captain, Participation in literature consultation and clinical reasoning training were significant predictors of clinical reasoning scores. Three distinct profiles were determined: Mechanistic response (15.28%), Pragmatic Developing (63.17%) and Textbook Proficient (21.55%). Participants with 3 or more training sessions were significantly less likely to belong to the low-profile group.

The study represents the first investigation focusing on the clinical reasoning of post-00s nursing students in China. Three distinct profiles and their associated influencing factors were identified. These findings underscore the value of profile-specific strategies and highlight the need for precision education models to facilitate personalized growth.