Friday, 20 April 2018: 1:45 PM
BACKGROUND: Over 10 million incidents of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) occurs annually in the United States (CDC, 2015). The World Health Organization [WHO], (2013), reports 38% of all female murders are committed by an intimate partner. PURPOSE: The purpose of this quasi-experimental pretest/posttest design is to evaluate the use of storytelling compared to simulation board game as an instructional strategy to enhance or improve IPV education in undergraduate baccalaureate nursing students. Unfortunately, identifying IPV victims is a challenge for students to recognize because warning signs are often subtle or absent (Bradbury-Jones, Appleton & Watts, 2016; Tuffs, Clements & Karlowics, 2008; Schwartz, 2007), and the lack of IPV content integrated in the classroom (Tuff et al., 2008). METHODS: This study was conducted in a historically black university on the east coast with nursing students (n =37) enrolled in one of two seven-week community health classes in the spring of 2017. Block 1 students (n=18) received IPV education delivered in storied format using PowerPoint to highlight key points. Block two students (n=19) received IPV instruction through a simulated board game. At the information session, prior to the start of the course, students who agreed to participate completed demographic information and pre-test questions. Immediately following the intervention, students completed post-test questions and a survey evaluating the methodology used. Three-weeks following the intervention students answered the same post-test questions to evaluate knowledge retention. During the final exam, students were given similar yet different questions to address concerns of question memorization rather than knowledge comprehension. RESULTS: Results suggest both groups of students agreed or strongly agreed each method brought additional awareness and desire to help victims of IPV. All students agreed the simulation board game was structured to meet content objectives, but not all agreed this method changed their opinion or provided further insight in recognizing/responding to victims of IPV. Pre-test/Post-test questions showed improvement of scores for participants using the simulation board game over students who heard the IPV story. CONCLUSIONS: Results of this study suggest stories are a powerful source of persuasion; however, simulation board games may improve IPV knowledge acquisition and retention. IPV experts agree there is a need for educational interventions to change attitudes and beliefs about IPV and more studies on their use (Dill-Shackleford, Green, Scharrer, Wetterer, & Shackleford, 2015). Recognizing the limitations of a small sample size, participant demographics, and previous IPV knowledge suggest that even more research is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of storytelling and simulation board games for IPV education in undergraduate nursing.