Odnos medicinskih sester do raziskovanja v zdravstveni negi
Nurses' attitudes towards research in nursing

slovenian

2012

volume 46, issue 1

Zbornica zdravstvene in babiške nege Slovenije - Zveza strokovnih društev medicinskih sester, babic in zdravstvenih tehnikov Slovenije
(Obvezni izvod spletne publikacije)

Introduction: Nursing is in the midst of important changes. In increasing numbers, nurses are implementing evidence-based practice (EBP), a problem-solving approach which relies on research findings in the delivery of care. Nurses' perceptions and attitudes associated with evidence-based practice are key factors for successful research in clinical settings. Education of nurses adds to understanding of the concept of evidence-based nursing, and the incorporation of this approach into general clinical practicesettings. The study attempts to identity the nurses' attitude towards research in nursing in relation to selected variables. Methods: The study was conducted in 2010. The sample included 128 hospital nurses with college or university education, all employees of the Internal Clinic of the University Medical Centre Ljubljana. Participation of the respondents was voluntary and their anonymity was assured. The purposive nonprobability sample was selected.The questionnaire was developed upon literature review and included questions about respondents' profile (demographic data, the respondents' educational level). The following 25 statements referred to their attitude towards nursing research. The respondents were asked to rate each item on a Likert-type scale, with responses ranging from 1 (strongly agree) to 5 (strongly disagree). When processing the data, the scale was presented in reverse order so that the higher score signified a more positive attitude of nurses towards research in nursing care. For the 25 statements, Cronbach's coefficient alpha was 0.82. Validation of hypotheses was performed on the basis of the t-test for independent samples, single-factor variance analysis test (ANOVA), chi square test and Pearson's correlation coefficient. P-value <0.05 represented statistical significance. Results: The results of the study indicate that nurses possess a positive attitude towards research in nursing care (PV=3.7). The relationship between the attitude towards research and the significance attributed to research by nursing educators at the undergraduate level has proven to be statistically significant (r=0.26; p=0.003). Comparisonof attitude towards research between different educational groups shows that the impact of education on the attitude towards research is statistically insignificant (t=1.242; p=0.217). On the other hand, statistically significant difference was established between the number of hours dedicated to research in the curriculum of undergraduate studies and theresearch of nurses (<2=28.1; p=0.000). Discussion and conclusions: The research results show that nurses with college or university education are aware of the importance of nursing research. The level of nurses' education has proven to have no statistically significant effect on their attitude towards research. Nurses' attitude toward research is, however, significantly affected by research courses in basic research methodology included in the undergraduate study curricula. This knowledge has a positive effect on the nurses' own research activity and their commitment to research in general. Future research is necessary to determine to what extent nurses undertake research and which are the barriers encountered.

13.11.2013