First Advisor

Dunemn, Kathleen

First Committee Member

Henry, Melissa

Second Committee Member

Topp, Robert

Third Committee Member

Allen, Michael Todd

Document Type

Dissertation

Date Created

12-2023

Abstract

As the field of nursing becomes increasingly more complex, nursing students are psychologically challenged as they progress through a program of study, prepare for the licensure examination, and enter professional practice. Identifying factors that influence student outcomes is necessary for faculty to effectively guide students toward successful completion of nursing school and passing the National Council Licensure Exam for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN). Along with academic and nonacademic demographic variables, the main objective of this exploratory, quantitative research study was to investigate the relationship between clinical judgement, academic resiliency, exam remediation, and NCLEX-RN first attempt pass rates. One hundred six senior, prelicensure, baccalaureate nursing students from a midsize Midwestern public university in the United States participated in this study by completing multiple surveys in April of 2023. The surveys included an academic and nonacademic demographic survey, the 10-item Connor-Davidson Resiliency Scale (CD-RISC-10), and the 11-item Lasater Clinical Judgment Rubric (LCJR). Both the CD-RISC-10 and the LCJR were assessed for construct validity through expert review and reliability through the Cronbach’s alpha. Five content experts found the two instruments to have strong item and scale construct validity. The Cronbach’s alpha for the pre-CD-RISC-10 was 0.856 and for the post-CD-RISC-10, it was 0.796. While the deletion of Item 3 slightly increased the Cronbach’s alpha, no adjustments were permitted by the author of the instrument. The Cronbach’s alpha was 0.886 for the pre-LCJR and 0.762 for the post-LCJR; no items were recommended for deletion. A variety of statistical tests were used to evaluate the data and identify major findings in this exploratory study. Exam remediation correlated with higher clinical judgment, higher academic resiliency, and course exams. Factors related to improved NCLEX-RN pass rates included higher NCLEX-RN preparation course grades, higher overall grade point average, fewer course failures, and self-identifying as Caucasian. Academic resiliency and clinical judgment had an inverse relationship with course failures. In this study, exam remediation was positively related to clinical judgment, academic resiliency, and multiple academic and nonacademic variables, yet the relationship between exam remediation activities and NCLEX-RN performance was not able to be directly analyzed. While interrelated variables suggested a connection among resiliency, clinical judgment, exam remediation, and NCLEX-RN exam performance, future studies are needed prior to making evidence-based recommendations to nursing academe.

Abstract Format

html

Extent

185 pages

Local Identifiers

Oberlander_unco_0161D_11196.pdf

Rights Statement

Copyright is held by the author.

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