Paper
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Development of Compassionate Caring in Baccalaureate Nursing Students: Results of a Preliminary Research Study
M. Christine Alichnie, PhD, RN, Department of Nursing, Bloomsburg University, Bloomsburg, PA, USA and Pamela S. Verosky, Bloomsburg University Honors Program and Nursing Department, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, Allentown, PA, USA.
| Learning Objective #1: to identify two MBTI personality types which support caring characteristics of nursing. |
| Learning Objective #2: list two elements important in identifying caring characteristics in nursing students as identified by their clients. |
Compassionate caring is an essential attribute to the nursing profession. Caring is a major attribute embedded in the definition of nursing. This research study was initiated to explore professional socialization of a nurse as a compassionate caregiver. Critical questions included: How do nurses learn the art of compassionate caring and when do they demonstrate that attribute to their clients? Is caring an innate quality? Or is it an aspect of one’s personality that can be taught or nurtured through professional socialization? Through exposure to the professional nursing culture and practice, students are socialized into the discipline based on the beliefs, values, and norms of their faculty role models. This baseline study explored the caring attributes in nursing students and the perceived level of caring by their clients. The purposes of this quantitative, panel-survey research study were: 1) to determine if a positive correlation existed between Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) personality types and client satisfaction with nursing care; and, 2) to determine if there was a positive correlation between the students’ progression between the first clinical experience in the third year and the end of the third year with changes on their MBTI personality type. Client satisfaction was measured by a satisfaction survey. Results from each semester were compared to determine changes in personality types and if those changes correlated with progression through the nursing curriculum and greater exposure to faculty role models. Data were analyzed to determine if certain MBTI types yielded a higher client satisfaction score than others. Results indicated that movement of personality types to a more caring attribute can occur through professional socialization. An extension of this study is being planned with a cross-sectional and longitudinal design to determine the total effects of professional nursing education on the role development of a caring/compassionate attribute in nursing students.