Critical thinking in nursing clinical practice, education and research: From attitudes to virtue

Abstract

Critical thinking is a complex, dynamic process formed by attitudes and strategic skills, with the aim of achieving a specific goal or objective. The attitudes, including the critical thinking attitudes, constitute an important part of the idea of good care, of the good professional. It could be said that they become a virtue of the nursing profession. In this context, the ethics of virtue is a theoretical framework that becomes essential for analyse the critical thinking concept in nursing care and nursing science. Because the ethics of virtue consider how cultivating virtues are necessary to understand and justify the decisions and guide the actions. Based on selective analysis of the descriptive and empirical literature that addresses conceptual review of critical thinking, we conducted an analysis of this topic in the settings of clinical practice, training and research from the virtue ethical framework. Following JBI critical appraisal checklist for text and opinion papers, we argue the need for critical thinking as an essential element for true excellence in care and that it should be encouraged among professionals. The importance of developing critical thinking skills in education is well substantiated; however, greater efforts are required to implement educational strategies directed at developing critical thinking in students and professionals undergoing training, along with measures that demonstrate their success. Lastly, we show that critical thinking constitutes a fundamental component in the research process, and can improve research competencies in nursing. We conclude that future research and actions must go further in the search for new evidence and open new horizons, to ensure a positive effect on clinical practice, patient health, student education and the growth of nursing science.

Nursing students’ perceptions of nursing diagnoses, critical thinking motivations, and problem‐solving skills during distance learning: A multicentral study

“…Problem‐solving skill is an important step that enables creative thinking in the nursing process. Critical thinking skill is an essential skill that makes it possible to identify and accurately establish the nursing diagnosis from the beginning to the end during the nursing process (Alfaro‐LeFevre, 2019; Falcó‐Pegueroles et al., 2021). Developing these two skills in students is critical for the nursing process to be used effectively in care (Campelia & Tate, 2019; Hung et al., 2015; Kocoglu Deniz et al., 2016; Moshirabadi et al., 2016; Uysal & Manavoğlu, 2019).…”

Technology-Supported Guidance Models Stimulating the Development of Critical Thinking in Clinical Practice: Mixed Methods Systematic Review

“…A critically thinking nurse is creative, flexible, and open-minded [ 5 ] and is able to question established assumptions [ 6 ]. To acquire a deeper understanding of a situation, a critically thinking nurse considers its context [ 7 ] and exhibits the ability to think logically, seek information, and transform knowledge into actions [ 8 ]. Hence, critically thinking nurses are highly skilled professionals [ 7 ].…”

“…To acquire a deeper understanding of a situation, a critically thinking nurse considers its context [ 7 ] and exhibits the ability to think logically, seek information, and transform knowledge into actions [ 8 ]. Hence, critically thinking nurses are highly skilled professionals [ 7 ]. Despite the importance of critical thinking in nursing practice, concerns have been raised as to whether newly graduated nurses possess the necessary level of critical thinking skills [ 9 - 11 ]; therefore, the means by which nursing students become critical thinkers has become a recurring topic in nursing education [ 12 ].…”

Critical thinking among clinical nurses and related factors: A survey study in public hospitals

“…Critical thinking takes its place in the nursing literature as an increasingly important concept (Falcó‐Pegueroles et al, 2020; Wu et al, 2017). Creative thinking, problem‐solving and decision‐making, which are critical thinking components, are frequently listed among the nursing management and nursing practices’ basic skills.…”