Attitudes toward research among undergraduate nursing students

Attitudinal changes about research among undergraduate nursing students during their two years in a baccalaureate nursing program showed no significant improvements except for significant improvements in confidence about understanding research terminology methods and evaluating the adequacy of research studies. These improvements were apparent after the course and in the second year when the students were queried again. The overall research attitude score was essentially the same in the senior year as it had been on the pre-test when the students began the program. Although 52.9% of the students indicated they wanted to go on for a master's degree, 6.2% said they definitely wanted to take additional research courses. In the senior year, 31.9% of the students indicated they definitely wanted to go on to graduate school, while 60.4% said they were uncertain; 7.7% indicated they definitely did not want to return to graduate school.