Latent profile characteristics and endogenous formation mechanism of research competence among undergraduate nursing...

To identify the latent profiles of research competence among nursing undergraduates and explore their influencing factors. Combined with qualitative data, this study aimed to clarify the associative patterns of psychological self-reliance and professional identity in the development of research competence, so as to provide evidence for implementing targeted and precise research education in nursing teaching.

An explanatory sequential mixed-methods design was adopted. In the quantitative phase, a cross-sectional survey was conducted among 993 nursing undergraduates recruited by convenience sampling from three universities in Anhui Province, China. Three validated instruments were applied, including the Research Competence Self-Rating Scale for Nursing Staff, the Psychological Self-Reliance Scale, and the Professional Identity Questionnaire. Latent profile analysis was utilized to identify the latent profiles of students' research competence, and multinomial logistic regression was performed to explore their influencing factors. In the qualitative phase, based on the quantitative classification results, purposive sampling was used to recruit 25 nursing students covering all latent profiles for semi-structured in-depth interviews. Colaizzi's seven-step thematic analysis was employed to extract core themes. The quantitative findings and qualitative themes were further integrated and triangulated, so as to comprehensively interpret the characteristics of latent profiles in research competence and their underlying influencing mechanisms among nursing undergraduates.

The quantitative analyses identified three distinct latent profiles of research competence among nursing undergraduates, namely, the Research-Inactive Profile (19.6%), the Task-Compliant Profile (66.6%), and the Proactive-Inquisitive Profile (13.8%). Multinomial logistic regression demonstrated that academic year, academic performance, maternal education level, experience in research projects, psychological self-reliance, and professional identity were independent predictors of class membership (all p < 0.05). Four core themes were extracted from the qualitative data: the divergent trajectories of research competence development; psychological self-reliance-the internal pillar for research autonomy and resilience; professional identity-the foundational meaning for internalizing research values; and the synergistic interaction between psychological self-reliance and professional identity.

Nursing undergraduates present significant group heterogeneity in research competence. Psychological self-reliance and professional identity are positively correlated with the development of research competence from the dual dimensions of ability transformation and value-driven motivation, respectively, and the two factors have a synergistic effect in the differentiation of research competence. It is recommended to establish a targeted precision research education system: implement stratified and categorized guidance based on students' latent profile characteristics, and systematically integrate the cultivation of psychological self-reliance and professional identity into the curriculum system, so as to improve the pertinence of research education.