The Relationship Among Study Engagement, Professional Self-concept And Learning Strategy In Undergraduate Nursing Students

Objective:To describe the status of study engagement in nursing undergraduates, as well as the levels of professional self-concept and learning strategy; then to analyze their relationships with study engagement; to give some advice on how to improve study engagement and to provide the reference for the training of high quality nursing education.Methods:Eight hundred nursing undergraduates were recruited from a medical college in Shandong Province during December2012. And the students were investigated with questionnaire of college students’ study engagement, professional self-concept of Nurses Instrument (PSCNI), the college students’ learning strategy scale and then the data were analyzed by SPSS13.0.Results:1.The total score of study engagement of nursing undergraduates was61.11±14.76, mean3.06±0.74. The level of study engagement was moderate. The scores of its dimensions from high to low in turn were:cognitive engagement(3.11±0.80), emotional engagement(3.08±0.83) and behavioral engagement(2.97±0.82).2.There were statistical differences of study engagement and its three demensions among general information. The students that scored at the highest1/3, from grade5, like the nursing major tended to demonstrate a higher score compared with the the lowest1/3and the middle1/3, from grade3and grade4, dislike nursing major; students who were familiar with professional self-concept and learning strategy scored higher than those that "never heard" and "occasionally heard"; those who ofen used learning strategy also scored higher than those who haven’t used and "occasionally" used the strategies. In addition, the students upgraded from junior college scored higher than those from ordinary nursing undergraduates and the vocational undergraduates(except cognitive engagement).There were also statistical differences on study engagement and behavioral engagement between the being poverty or not, between those that have or haven’t been a student cadres(P<0.05).3.The score of professional self-concept of nursing undergraduates was87.39±9.51, mean2.91±0.32. Showing that the nursing students’professional self-concept tended to be positive. The scores of its five dimensions from high to low were skills, flexibility, satisfaction, leadership and communication. Correlation analysis showed that the professional self-concept and its five dimensions in nursing undergraduates had positive correlation with study engagement(r=0.148-0.434, P<0.01).4. The score of learning strategy of nursing undergraduates was166.15±26.92, mean3.39±0.55, indicating that the nursing students have mastered a certain capacity of learning strategy. Among them, the score of emotional strategy was the highest and the resource management strategy was the lowest. Learning strategy and its four dimensions were positively correlated with their study engagement(P<0.01, r=0.801,0.741,0.752,0.728,0.714).5. Multiple regressions were used to analyze the factors that influencing study engagement and its dimensions. Grade, academic achievements, degree type, the extent of adopting learning strategies, total score of learning strategy and metacognitive strategy were predictive factors of study engagement(adjusted R2=0.668). Grade, degree type, being poverty or not, total score of learning strategy, metacognitive strategy and emotional strategy were predictive factors of behavior engagement (adjusted R2=0.528); degree type, the extent of adopting learning strategies, total score of learning strategy, emotional strategy, flexibility and leardership were predictive factors of cognitive engagement(adjusted R2=0.606); and grade, degree type, academic achievements, the extent of adopting learning strategies, total score of learning strategy, emotional strategy and total score of professional self-concept were predictive factors of emotional engagement (adjusted R2=0.541).Conclusions: 1.The level of study engagement of nursing undergraduates is moderate, impling that nursing educators should focus on the status of study engagement, pay more attention to the ordinary nursing undergraduates, grade3and grade4students, dislike the major, the lowest1/3scores, not familiar with professional self-concept and learning strategy, the poor level of using learning strategy, make efforts to foster their study engagement.2.The level of professional self-concept for nursing undergraduates is positive, the better professional self-concept,the stronger study engagement.3.Nursing undergraduates have a certain ability of learning strategies. The better learning strategies, the stronger study engagement.4.The grades, academic achievements, degree types, the extent of adoping learning strategies, total score of learning strategy and metacognitive strategy in nursing undergraduates have positive prediction for study engagement. The grades, degree types, being poverty or not, total score of learning strategy, metacognitive strategy and emotional strategy have positive prediction for behavior engagement; degree types, the extent of adoping learning strategies, total score of learning strategy, emotional strategy, flexibility and leardership have positive prediction for cognitive engagement; the grades,degree types, academic achievements, the extent of adoping learning strategies, total score of learning strategy, emotional strategy and total score of Professional self-concept have positive prediction for emotional engagement.