Nursing Students’ Self-Graded Motivation to Complete their Programme of Study

Abstract

The aim of this study was to explore variation in nursing students’ motivation to complete their programme of study, as well as factors relating to low versus high motivation and students’ opinions of what would increase their motivation to complete their programme of study.A study was carried out between April 2006 and December 2007. A total of 872 students registered in a 3-year nursing programme randomly participated in self-rating their motivation score once each semester. Descriptive statistics, statistical calculations and content analysis regarding open-ended questions were performed. Most of the students, 73%, rated their motivation as ≥6 on a 0-10 Likert scale; and 16% gave a rating of ≤4.The desire to become a registered nurse (RN) and having a positive attitude towards the studies were the main factors influencing high motivation to complete the programme of study. Having a negative attitude towards the studies was an explanation of decreased motivation. There was a significant decrease (p=0.001) in the motivation score with respect to number of semesters, and motivation increased with the student’s age (p=0.0119). Suggestions for increasing motivation given by those who rated their motivation as ≤4 mainly focused on improvements in didactics and study organisation.

Motivation in the First Year of Nursing Education: It’s Relationship with Professional Self-Concept, Self-Esteem

“…In other studies performed with nursing candidates, similar results were found [6,32]. In a study performed in Sweden motivation was found to be higher in the first years of nursing education [26]. The motivation of students includes internal and external factors, and sometimes these factors may interact [7,32].…”

“…In this context, increasing the education and clinical application motivation of students would be important in the positive development of their self-esteem and professional self-concept [24]. In a number of studies, motivation was found to positively affect academic performance [25][26][27]. Additionally, it has been stressed that motivation increases occupational development and service recipient satisfaction [28,29].…”

Nursing students' changing orientation and attitudes towards nursing during education: A two year longitudinal study

“…Our study showed that an important intrinsic motivation for students to remain in their programmes was their passionate desire to become nurses, suggesting that the desirable elements of a nursing career outweighed the problems they encountered. This desire can manifest itself at a very young age, and for some students nursing had always been a career goal (Day et al, 2005;Stomberg and Nilsson, 2010). Support from family and friends, and support from tutors and school staff proved to be extrinsic factors which really influenced their decision to pursue nursing.…”

Strategies to promote academic motivation in nursing students: A qualitative study

“…[ 12 ] Studies have shown that, despite the fact that nursing students start the program with high motivation, their motivation declines throughout the program. [ 2 7 13 14 15 ]…”