Public Image of Nursing Among High School Adolescents in Türkiye: Implications for the Future Healthcare Workforce

Background: The global shortage of healthcare workers continues to grow each year. In particular, low nurse staffing levels are known to be associated with adverse patient outcomes. Helping adolescents understand the nursing profession beyond stereotypical societal perceptions-and recognize its full range of roles-may make nursing a more attractive career option. However, little is known about the perceptions of adolescents who are in the process of making career choices. Objective: This study aims to determine the perceptions of high school adolescents in Türkiye regarding the image of the nursing profession. Method: The sample of this cross-sectional study consisted of 581 high school adolescents in Türkiye. Data were collected using the Descriptive Characteristics Form and the Adolescents' Perceptions of the Image of Nursing Scale (APNIS). In addition to descriptive statistics, independent-samples t-tests, one-way ANOVA, and Chi-Square analyses were performed. Results: The findings indicated that adolescents generally hold a positive perception of the nursing profession, with higher scores in the professional image, perception, and care and therapeutic role subscales, and lower scores in the communication, informative role, and healing environment subscales. A total of 65.7% of the adolescents reported that they did not intend to choose nursing as a career. The intention to choose nursing as a career was higher among adolescents who did not have a nurse in their family (p < 0.05). Conclusions: The results indicate that positive perceptions of the nursing image alone may not be sufficient in adolescents' career decision-making and underscore the importance of presenting the profession's roles in a comprehensive and realistic manner. While adolescents with a nurse in the family demonstrated more positive perceptions of the nursing profession (higher APNIS scores), their intention to choose nursing as a career was lower compared to those without a nurse in the family. These findings suggest that familiarity with the profession may positively influence professional image while simultaneously reducing career intention, possibly due to greater awareness of occupational challenges. The findings provide important insights into how adolescents form their perceptions of the image of nursing and may contribute to future research and educational initiatives aimed at increasing interest in the nursing profession.