Development of Professionalism in Practical Nursing Students

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the development of professionalism in practical nursing students enrolled in a community college career program. The study was conducted to address the development of specific professional attributes including belief in the use of the professional organization as a major referent, belief in self-regulation, and a sense of calling to the field.While there is extensive research about the development of professionalism in registered nursing and other occupations, there are no studies about the development of professionalism in student practical nurses. In fact, there is limited research about practical nursing in general. The study was conducted to address a gap in research.A quantitative research design was employed to address three research questions, each of which contained one hypothesis. Archival data collected from Hall’s Professional Scale (1968) as adapted by Snizek (1972) were analyzed. Descriptive data analyses included the mean and standard deviation for each subscale on the survey. An independent-samples t test was conducted on three of the survey constructs using the dependent variable of semester in the program.The results of the study indicated that there were no statistically significant differences in the use of the professional organization as a major referent, belief in self-regulation, or in the sense of calling to the field in student practical nurses between students entering the program and students completing the program. These results were similar to results in research involving other disciplines which suggested that professional development must continue and be refined post-graduation.