Gender-based violence attitudes and dating violence experiences of students in nursing and other health sciences: A multicentre cross-sectional study

Current institutionalized sexism in nursing degree classrooms: A multicenter qualitative study in Catalonia

Everyday sexism is not always consciously identified in nursing degree classrooms. This leads to the reproduction of inequality that is legitimized in interpersonal relationships and institutional dynamics.

AIM

Describe how nursing students perceive and experience everyday sexism in the classroom at various universities in Catalonia.

METHODS

Multicenter study using quantitative and qualitative content analysis of semi-structured interviews. The study population comprised fourth-year nursing students in Catalonia. The interviews were conducted online from February to June 2022. An ad hoc interview script was designed based on the scientific literature on the perception of sexism and discrimination in the classroom. The anonymity and confidentiality of participants and data were ensured.

RESULTS

Twenty fourth-year nursing students participated, 18 women and two men, ages 21 to 49. Use of the space was unequal: men occupy the back rows of the classroom, forming male-only groups. Moreover, men participate more often in large groups when a debate is established, and they do so impulsively. Women are more respectful and ask questions about class content. Male students tend to do less work in group projects but present more. Female students lead the group work, especially in terms of coordination and organization, and take responsibility for the more complex parts. However, they participate less in oral presentations.

CONCLUSION

In the nursing classroom, women are invisibilized and limited in their use of space. They also take on excess work but participate less. Men participate more, reject inclusive language, and work together to claim their space. These dynamics create the conditions for a nursing degree education steeped in legitimized everyday sexism.

Experiences of nursing students who are victims of dating violence: a qualitative study

BACKGROUND

Dating Violence (DV) is a type of Intimate Partner Violence that occurs between young people, and they are those behaviours that cause physical, sexual or psychological harm.

OBJECTIVE/AIM

To know the experience of university students around dating violence.

DESIGN AND METHODS

Qualitative study with a phenomenological approach was conducted through semi-structured individual interviews with nursing students' victims of dating violence with the same starting categories. The public involve in this study were nursing students who freely agreed to participate in the interviews and gave their informed consent.

RESULTS

Eleven nursing students participated, the sample was heterogeneous for gender and sexual diversity. Obtaining results about their experience with dating violence, manifestations of dating violence and cyber violence in their relationships, consequences, formal and informal help seeking and proposals for help as nursing students, among others.

CONCLUSION

Dating violence is a serious problem that seriously affects the victims and requires the creation of prevention programs. The experiences of university students about DV are mainly painful experiences, with serious consequences for those involved, needing help from their close environment and professional help to overcome the problems generated by their partners.

IMPLICATIONS

It is important due to the high prevalence of this phenomenon, also among nursing students, to provide key points to future health professionals and victims of dating violence on the correct way to act against violence due to lack of knowledge on the subject. This study clarifies the experiences of dating violence and how to offer help to victims from the informal and professional sphere.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Clinical Research of the Health Area of Talavera de la Reina (Toledo) with code 01/2021.

Everyday sexism in nursing degrees: A cross-sectional, multicenter study

BACKGROUND

Gender stereotypes are reproduced in healthcare settings, leading to unequal relationships, discrimination, and sexism. University students express insecurity about their ability to identify and handle these situations. There are gaps in our knowledge about everyday sexism in academic and clinical nursing settings.

AIM

To describe how nursing students perceive sexist behavior in their daily life at university and during university teaching.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional, multicenter study using an online questionnaire.

SETTING

Eight universities that offer nursing degrees in Catalonia.

PARTICIPANTS

In total, 317 valid responses were collected. The inclusion criteria were to be a third- or fourth-year undergraduate or a first- or second-year postgraduate nursing student in Catalonia. There were no exclusion criteria. Snowball sampling.

METHOD

Online questionnaire designed ad hoc with sociodemographic variables, academic characteristics, and perception of sexism and discrimination in students' daily life collected between November 2020 and March 2021. The Microsexism Against Women Scale was used as a frame of reference to formulate questions on sexism and discrimination at the nursing school and during practicums. A descriptive, bivariate analysis of the data was performed.

RESULTS

Students do not place importance on differences between genders in involvement, task distribution, and oral presentation of group work. In this setting, there seems to be no perception of situations of power or inequality. Female students reported a higher frequency of unwanted physical contact than male students; however, the percentage was similar for both in practicums. Everyday sexism and discrimination were perceived at the nursing school but not in practicums.

CONCLUSIONS

Everyday sexism is perceived in nursing degrees in the context of relationships within the school but not during classroom teaching or in care settings. Various mechanisms make it difficult for students to consciously detect such behaviors. Addressing sexism in nursing training is necessary to ensure a safe learning environment.