Relationships Among Resilience, Stress, and Persistence in Prenursing Students During COVID-19

Abstract

Background: The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has created personal, financial, and academic challenges for prenursing students, which may hinder academic persistence. Understanding and supporting their well-being is important, as they prepare to apply to nursing programs. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore relationships among stress, resilience, and academic persistence in prenursing students intending to apply to either an on-campus or accelerated online nursing program. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive correlational research design was used. Online survey data (N = 364) were collected during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results: Campus-based prenursing students reported higher levels of stress and lower levels of resilience than their accelerated online counterparts. A significant negative relationship was noted between stress and scores on resilience and persistence measures in both groups. Conclusions: Program-specific interventions promoting resilience and stress management techniques are needed to support prenursing student persistence, especially as they prepare for admission to nursing programs.

Connecting lived experiences of pre‐nursing students during COVID‐19 with learner well‐being: A qualitative inquiry

“…Demographic data collected in the observational study (Urban et al, 2022 ) were re‐analysed for only those participants who provided short‐answer data. Demographic data collected included information about their age, sex and race/ethnicity.…”

“…For this study, PN students are defined as those who have declared nursing as their major but have not begun formal upper‐division nursing education training, including clinical courses. They come from a variety of academic backgrounds, including traditional first‐time freshman, transfer students and second baccalaureate holders (Urban et al, 2022 ). As they prepare for admission to a nursing program, PN students experience the tension that exists between successful completion of pre‐requisite courses and pre‐program requirements and the unknown territory of professional socialization required within a clinical nursing program (Packard & Hoffman, 2016 ).…”

Through the Lens of the Social Determinants of Learning™: Experiences of Online Prenursing Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…In the larger study, participants were asked to respond to four short-answer questions. Because of the large number of responses received, analysis of the first three questions was reported separately (Urban et al, 2022). This article focuses on an analysis of the fourth question, “How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected you as a prenursing student?” with a focus on how the SDOL were reflected in participants’ responses.…”

“…PN students are defined as students who have not begun formal nursing education training, including clinical courses. They represent a variety of academic backgrounds, including traditional first-time freshmen, transfer students, and previous baccalaureate degree holders (Urban et al, 2022). It is important for nurse educators to understand and even expect the diversity of ages, life experiences, and responsibilities that today’s PN students bring with them as they learn.…”

Exploring Meditation Profiles and Predictors in Nursing Students

“…Nursing students’ stressors frequently relate to clinical training activities and academic workload (McCarthy et al, 2018; Pulido-Martos et al, 2012). Even pre-nursing students are not exempt from higher than average levels of stress, particularly during the nursing school application phase (Urban et al, 2022).…”