Identifying reasoning skills for the selection of undergraduate nursing students: a focus group study

Iranian nursing applicants' perception of the nursing profession: A qualitative study

AIM

This study was conducted to describe the perceptions of nursing applicants about their chosen profession and to explore the factors which influenced their understanding.

DESIGN

A qualitative study with a conventional content analysis design.

METHODS

Participants were 19 nursing applicants enrolling in nursing schools in three provinces of western Iran. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews. The content analysis of the interviews was done according to the steps proposed by Zhang and Wildemuth.

RESULTS

The mean age of participants was 20 years (SD = 2.5), and 11 of them (57.9%) were females. Participants understood the nature of nursing work to encompass only a limited level of independence; they viewed it as a feminine profession, and as a job with spiritual rewards. The perceived content of nursing work included providing help and patient care in the hospital with a focus on performing procedural tasks. Applicants' perceptions of nurses' characteristics included strong physical endurance, communication skills, emotional strength and low intellectual skills. The professional status of nursing was perceived simultaneously as having high job security but limited potential for career advancement and professional growth. The factors reported to influence applicants' perceptions were related to the media, academic-career counsellors, personal factors, and family and friends.

Nursing applicants' reasoning skills and factors related to them: A cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

The assessment of reasoning skills is recommended in undergraduate nursing student selection. Reasoning skills are crucial for sound decision-making, improving patient safety and are necessary from the very beginning of studies. Nursing applicants' reasoning skills based on the reasoning process have not been previously measured.

OBJECTIVES

To assess undergraduate nursing applicants' reasoning skills and factors related to them.

DESIGN

A cross-sectional study.

SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS

Undergraduate nursing applicants (n = 1056, response rate 55.4%), who consented to the study and performed a joint electronic entrance examination to six Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences in spring 2019, participated in the study.

METHODS

The Reasoning Skills (ReSki) test, based on the steps of the reasoning process, was used, comprising three question sections (collecting information, processing information, and identifying the problem and establishing goals). Background variables were collected through a questionnaire and the Positive System Usability Scale (P-SUS). The data were analysed with descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation coefficients and analysis of covariance with Tukey's test in post-hoc multiple group comparisons.

RESULTS

Applicants' total reasoning skills mean scores were above the centre of the range of possible scores (2.72/4.5, SD = 0.80). The applicants scored higher in collecting and processing information than in identifying the problem and establishing goals. Standard deviations demonstrated variance between the applicants' ability. Age, gender, and previous education were statistically significantly related to applicants' reasoning skills. Previous work experience was statistically significantly related to success only in the step of identifying the problem and establishing goals.

CONCLUSIONS

Nursing applicants' reasoning skills vary in the student selection phase. Applicants are less able to identify the problem and establish goals than to collect and process information. Vocational education does not necessarily develop adequate reasoning skills and thus prepare students for higher education studies. The results have implications for educational institutions and further research.

Development and psychometric testing of Reasoning Skills test for nursing student selection: An item response theory approach

AIMS

To develop and psychometrically test the Reasoning Skills (ReSki) test assessing undergraduate nursing applicants' reasoning skills for student selection purposes.

DESIGN

A methodological cross-sectional design was applied for the psychometric testing.

METHODS

The ReSki test was developed as part of a wider electronic entrance examination. The ReSki test included a case followed by three question sections assessing nursing applicants' reasoning skills according to the reasoning process. Item response theory was used for psychometric testing to assess item discrimination, difficulty and pseudoguessing parameters. The ReSki test was taken by 1056 nursing applicants in six Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences (28 May 2019).

RESULTS

In the development process, the expert evaluations indicated acceptable content validity. In the psychometric testing, the test reliability was supported by item variance, the theoretical structure was supported by the correlation coefficients and the applicant mean performance supported an acceptable overall test difficulty. The item response theory indicated variance between the items' difficulty and discrimination ranges. However, most of the wrong items failed at being functional distractors.

CONCLUSION

The ReSki test is a new and valid objective assessment of undergraduate nursing applicants' reasoning skills. The item response theory provided item-level information that can be used for further development of the test, especially related to the revisions needed for the distractor items to achieve the desired level of difficulty.

IMPACT

What problem did the study address? The assessment of nursing applicants' reasoning skills is suggested, but there is a lack of admission tools. What were the main findings? The results provided support for the reliability and validity of the ReSki test. Item response theory indicated the need for further item-level improvement. Where and on whom will the research have an impact? The results may benefit higher education institutions and researchers when developing a test and/or student selection processes.