A Longitudinal Study on the Development of Moral Judgement in Korean Nursing Students

Abstract

This longitudinal study examined the development of moral judgement in 37 nursin students attending a university in Suwon, Korea. The participants completed the Korean version of the Defining Issues Test to allow analysis of their level of moral judgement. The development of moral judgement was quantified using 'the moral development score' at each stage (i.e. the six stages detailed by Kohlberg) and the 'P(%) score' (a measure of the overall moral judgement level). The results were as follows: (1) the moral development score for stage 5A was consistently the highest across the four years of the students' course, showing significant differences in some sociodemographic factors including home, birth order and monthly income; and (2) the P(%) score was higher in fourth-year (47.47 +/- 11.21) than in first-year (46.13 +/- 9.73) students. There was no significant difference in the P(%) score according to sociodemographic factors. Further studies will examine in detail the correlation between curriculum and moral judgement development. We suggest that courses in ethics education should be made more relevant.

Becoming a nurse as a moral journey: A constructivist grounded theory

“…It is a stage or station at which there is the fullest possible integration of professional identity and the greatest enhancement of moral competencies and is arrived at when students are in their final year of study. [1][2][3]6,[10][11][12]27,28 To reach this level, the students need to have ''bonded'' with nursing. In a study of Japanese nursing students, ''bonding into nursing'' was defined as the process by which each nurse fully established her or his professional identity as a nurse.…”

“…11 Furthermore, the results of two studies on Korean nursing students showed that the level of moral development was higher at graduation. 12,13 There is thus a plethora of studies that indicate that nursing education has a positive effect on moral development of nursing students during college years, culminating in a high level of moral development at graduation. However, the influential factors within nursing education that students are exposed to and how this relates to an unfolding evolvement of higher moral development have not been specifically identified.…”

Ethical Problems Observed By Student Nurses

“…The development of students' moral judgment also varies according to their academic years. Kim et al 6 found that moral development scores were higher in fourth year than in first year students. Lemonidou et al 29 …”

Does moral judgement improve in occupational therapy and physiotherapy students over the course of their pre‐licensure training?

“…Ethics education should begin early in the educational process, include case studies using problem‐solving approaches, and involve mentorship in the clinical practice experiences (Doherty 2005). Learning environments that ‘provide opportunities for group participation, shared decision‐making, and assumption of responsibility for the consequences of actions tend to stimulate the development of higher levels of moral judgement’ (Kim et al . 2004, p. 255).…”