Investigation of technophobia level and its related factors among nursing students

Abstract

Background Various technologies aid nurses in patient care. However, nurses are often anxious to use these technologies. Despite the adverse effects of nurses' technophobia on patient care, no study has evaluated technophobia in nursing students. This study aimed to investigate the level of technophobia and its causative factors in nursing students. Methods This study was performed on nursing students at Kerman University of Medical Sciences (KUMS), Kerman, Iran, using four valid and reliable questionnaires developed based on the existing literature. Independent t-test, analysis of variance, Kruskal-Wallis, and Dunnett T3 post hoc test were used to study technophobia based on background characteristics. The Spearman correlation coefficient was also used to examine the relationship between technological skills and technophobia. Results The technophobia rate of nursing students was 33.18 ± 6.95. The level of technophobia was high in the females and students that had lower education (p < 0.05). Nursing students' skills in using information systems and medical equipment were less than their computer skills. Students with low computer skills had a high level of technophobia (p < 0.05). Nurses' technophobia often occurs due to insufficient knowledge, poor experience and skills, and lack of a mentor when using technologies. Conclusions The level of technophobia was moderate among nursing students. Their skills to use medical information systems and equipment are less than their computer skills. Low computer skills and poor ability to use medical equipment and information systems increase technophobia. The results suggest improving the computer and technological skills of nursing students especially females from the beginning of their study.