Coping styles, adversity quotient, and resilience among Chinese nursing students during clinical placement

This study examined the experiences of Chinese undergraduate nursing students and identified factors associated with coping style, adversity quotient (AQ), and resilience during clinical placement.

A cross-sectional study was conducted across three hospitals in Wuhan, China. A total of 343 undergraduate nursing students completed the Medical Staff Resilience Scale (MSRS), the Simple Coping Style Questionnaire (SCSQ), and the Adversity Quotient Scale (AQS) during the final 2 weeks of a 40-week clinical practice placement.

Resilience was positively correlated with adversity quotient and coping (r = 0.796, r = 0.820, p < 0.01). Linear regression analysis showed that gender (β = 0.224), coping style (β = 0.398), and adversity quotient (β = 0.439) were significant influencing factors of nursing students' resilience, with statistically significant differences (p < 0.05). Together, these variables accounted for 71% of the total variance in resilience.

Nursing students with higher levels of coping and adversity quotient were more resilient in dealing with adversity during clinical placement. Female nursing students demonstrated higher levels of resilience than their male counterparts in the same clinical placement context. Therefore, this study supports the need to integrate resilience and coping strategies into nursing education, especially for male students.