Nursing students' empathic communication: Role in recognizing and treating chronic pain patients

OBJECTIVE

A substantial body of research supports what many nurses know from experience: empathy is at the heart of providing quality care. The major objective of this study was to identify unique mechanisms through which higher empathy translates into greater intentions to treat patients in pain employing novel methodology.

METHODS

Using an ecologically-valid scenario methodology, student nurses (N = 156) reviewed the narrative of a patient in chronic pain. They completed standard, valid measures of empathy toward the patient, perception of the patient's pain, and intention to provide pain-relieving treatment. Nursing student's personality traits were assessed and perception of patients' age and sex were experimentally manipulated.

RESULTS

Empathy was associated with higher intention to treat the patient in chronic pain irrespective of patients' age or sex. A moderated-mediation analysis confirmed that nursing students with higher empathy perceived the patient in the scenario as being in greater pain. This was correspondingly associated with higher intention to provide treatment. Nursing students' trait Extraversion was a moderator.

CONCLUSION

Empathy not only improves rapport between patients and providers but is related to intentions to provide pain-relieving treatment.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

The clinical and educational importance of empathy in patient-provider relationships are discussed.

The relationship between perceived stress and emotional intelligence in Moroccan nursing students

BACKGROUND

Nursing students are subjected to many stressors during their clinical practicums. Emotional intelligence (EI) could act as a real stress regulator. In this perspective, we sought to study the relationship between stress and EI in a sample of Moroccan nursing students.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This study was conducted using the descriptive correlational method. The statistical population consisted of the nursing students of the Higher Institute of Nursing Professions and Health Techniques of Tetouan in Morocco during the academic year 2021-2022. Among them, 146 participants were selected on the basis of simple random sampling. Participants completed a self-administered questionnaire addressing sociodemographic factors, perceived stress (the Perceived Stress in Clinical Practice Scale), and emotional intelligence (Wong and Law Emotional Intelligence Scale test). Descriptive statistics were used and Pearson's correlation coefficient was applied to assess the correlation between stress and EI, and to compare them according to socio-demographic characteristics. A linear regression analysis was calculated to analyze the effect of independent variables on perceived stress and EI. For the analysis, a level of 0.05 was chosen.

RESULTS

The overall mean age of the students was 20.02 ± 1.12 years. Participants had moderate levels of perceived stress (M = 2.42 ± 0.77) and high levels of EI (M = 3.79 ± 1.09). A significant positive correlation between perceived stress and EI was found (r = 0.741, P < 0,05). The regression model shows that EI, education level, and clinical practice setting can explain changes in perceived stress levels and are effective and significant factors (P < 0,001).

CONCLUSION

EI has been shown to be a protective factor against stress in nursing students. Those with well-developed EI have lower levels of stress. Therefore, it is suggested that a mindfulness-based training program be incorporated into the nursing curriculum to develop emotional skills and combat stress in students.

The Stressful Personality: A Meta-Analytical Review of the Relation Between Personality and Stress

The current study presented the first meta-analytic review on the associations between the Big Five personality traits and stress measured under different conceptualizations (stressor exposure, psychological and physiological stress responses) using a total of 1,575 effect sizes drawn from 298 samples. Overall, neuroticism was found to be positively related to stress, whereas extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness were negatively linked to stress. When stress assessed under different conceptualizations was tested, only neuroticism, agreeableness, and conscientiousness were related to stressor exposure. All of the Big Five personality traits were significantly associated with psychological stress perception, whereas the five personality traits showed weak to null associations with physiological stress response. Further moderation analyses suggested that the associations between personality traits and stress under different conceptualizations were also contingent upon different characteristics of stress, sample, study design, and measures. The results supported the important role of personality traits in individual differences in stress.

Prevalence of depression and stress among the first year students in Suranaree University of Technology, Thailand

The objectives of this study were to evaluate the level of depression and stress among the first-year students at Suranaree University of Technology (SUT) and to compare the level of depression and stress among the samples, classified by demographic factors, including gender, domicile, and problem. This research has been approved by the SUT's Research Ethics Committee. The study period was between July and August 2018. The online, self-report questionnaire was used as a research instrument to collect data from the sample of SUT first-year students. The total number of first-year students at SUT was 3,552 and the response rate was 65.15%. The major findings revealed that 7.0% and 51.1% of them were suffering from depression, and pathological stress, respectively. In addition, the prevalence of depression and pathological stress was higher in female samples than in other gender groups. The findings would suggest that related activities should be organized to promote students' awareness of their suffering and self-control in order to prevent further depression and pathological stress.

Influences of Occupational Burnout and Personality on Lipid Peroxidation Among Nurses in Shahroud City, Iran

Considering the relationship between occupational burnout and oxidative stress, identifying the factors that affect occupational burnout, such as recognizing individual characteristics, would be beneficial for implementing strategies to reduce oxidative stress levels. This study was conducted on 92 nurses from a hospital in Shahroud, a city in northeastern Iran, who were chosen at random. The data was collected through the Demographic Questionnaire, Maslach Burnout Inventory and Personality Factors Inventory. Each participant's serum markers of oxidative stress were also measured. Total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and neuroticism were found to have a negative relationship in this study. Furthermore, marital status, the ward where nurses work, the type of contract, emotional exhaustion, and depersonalization were all found to be significant predictors of malondialdehyde (MDA). Neuroticism, emotional exhaustion, and depersonalization were the most important predictors of oxidative stress levels.The results of this study suggest that some approaches to reducing oxidative stress can be implemented by identifying the factors influencing occupational burnout and also by recognizing individuals' personality traits.

COVID-19 in Guangdong: Immediate Perceptions and Psychological Impact on 304,167 College Students

The outbreak of COVID-19 has brought unprecedented psychological pressure to people across China and more widely across the entire globe. The aim of this study was to assess the immediate perceptions of COVID-19 among college students in Guangdong Province, China, and to assess the psychological impact of the outbreak. We conducted a cross-sectional survey of college students via online questionnaires between February 13th and February 22nd, 2020. A total of 304,167 students completed the Impact of Event Scale 6 (IES-6) and other items. The results showed that 155,077 (50.9%) of the students reported stress symptoms, 1,565 (0.5%) reported poor mental health, and 9,752 (3.2%) reported poor sleep quality. Analysis indicated that the students' perceptions of COVID-19 were correlated with psychological stress, self-perceived mental health and sleep quality. Moreover, the analysis revealed that the relationship between types of perception and levels of stress symptoms varied according to the students' demographic characteristics. These findings allow us to better understand psychological stress among students and the factors influencing stress during the COVID-19 outbreak. Understanding these factors will help us to design intervention programs with the aim of alleviating stress among students and reducing the potential for developing psychological disorders.

The Role of Neuroticism in Predicting Psychological Harassment in Nursing: A Longitudinal Study

Psychological harassment is a serious occupational risk for nurses, but little is known about its related factors and possible predictors. The objective of the present study was to investigate whether nursing students’ neuroticism trait and coping styles can predict psychological harassment at work when they later become nurses. A non-experimental, longitudinal, three-wave prospective study with a time lag of 6 years was carried out, following nursing students from three Spanish universities until they joined the health labor market. The age range of the sample was 20–48 years, and the mean age was 26.99 ± 5.72; the majority of the sample were women (88.5%). Predictor variables were neuroticism and coping styles (emotional and behavioral coping). The criterion variable was psychological harassment. To examine the model fit between the predictor and criterion variables, we conducted structural equation modelling. Results confirmed a high correlation between neuroticism and psychological harassment. In addition, a direct effect of neuroticism on psychological harassment was found; however, emotional and behavioral coping styles did not show a good fit. Proactive interventions to improve emotional self-control are needed in order to prevent negative effects of psychological harassment at work on nurses.

Connections between academic burnout, resilience, and psychological well-being in nursing students: A longitudinal study

AIMS

The aim of this study was to explore the longitudinal associations between academic burnout and resilience and psychological well-being, and the stability of these variables in a sample of university nursing students.

BACKGROUND

Nursing students frequently suffer academic burnout, which is brought on by different situations experienced during the training process and that can concern his psychological well-being. Resilience is a personal resource that allows adverse situations to be handled in a successful way.

DESIGN

Longitudinal design.

METHODS

Data were collected at two moments separated by 18 months (2014-2016), with 218 students at T1 and 113 at T2. At each time a questionnaire was given to them, with questions about socioeconomic demographics and three validated scales to measure academic burnout, resilience, and psychological well-being.

RESULTS

The three dimensions that make up academic burnout remained steady over time, while resilience increased and psychological well-being improved. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed the longitudinal effect of emotional exhaustion at T1 and at T2 they showed the longitudinal effect of resilience on psychological well-being at T2. The inverse hierarchical regression analyses did not reveal significant relationships for any of the variables measured at T2 in connection with psychological well-being measured at T1.

CONCLUSIONS

Emotional exhaustion was the most relevant dimension of academic burnout when predicting psychological well-being in the analysed sample. Moreover, resilience has an important positive effect on psychological well-being in the analysed sample. The practical implications of the results are discussed from the perspective of academic training and some recommendations are given for future research in this field.

The influence of personality traits and socio-demographic characteristics on paediatric nurses' compassion satisfaction and fatigue

AIMS

To explore the level of and the association between, compassion satisfaction and fatigue of paediatric nurses; to determine the association between personality traits and compassion satisfaction and fatigue; to identify the determinants of compassion satisfaction and fatigue.

BACKGROUND

Paediatric nurses are prone to experiencing compassion fatigue associated with caring for children with illness and their families, yet its connection with nurses' personality traits remains unknown.

DESIGN

A cross-sectional descriptive study design was used.

METHODS

The data collection used three instruments measuring socio-demography, responses to the compassion satisfaction and fatigue test and the revised NEO personality inventory. The study used descriptive, correlation and multiple regression analysis for the data collected between April - July 2014.

RESULTS

From 173 female paediatric nurses, two-thirds worked in critical care units and indicated a satisfactory level of compassion satisfaction and a low level of compassion fatigue, despite a lack of association between the two concepts. Four determinants-agreeableness, extraversion, conscientiousness and engaging with outdoor activities-were predictive and explained 43.6% of total variance of compassion satisfaction. Two risk factors of compassion fatigue identified were less emotional stability and singlehood (marital status) and these explained 26.1% of total variance of compassion fatigue.

CONCLUSION

Support for improving agreeableness and emotional stability in paediatric nurses' workplaces including involvement in the outdoor activities and an increase in social connection may enhance compassion satisfaction and prevent exhaustive compassion fatigue.

An experimental examination of the effort-reward imbalance model of occupational stress: Increased financial reward is related to reduced stress physiology

Effort-reward imbalance in the workplace is linked to a variety of negative health and organisational outcomes, but it has rarely been assessed experimentally. We manipulated reward (while keeping effort constant) in a within-subjects design with female participants (N=60) who were randomly assigned to high and standard reward conditions within a simulated office environment. Self-report, behavioural (task performance), and physiological (heart rate variability, salivary alpha amylase) measures assessed the impact of increased financial reward. Participants reported increased perceptions of reward, performed moderately better on the task, and were less physiologically reactive in the high reward versus the standard condition. These findings highlight the importance of assessing both subjective self-reports of stress together with objective physiological measures of stress, and suggest that increasing monetary rewards has the potential to decrease stress physiological reactivity, and in turn, reduce the risk of ill-health in employees, and may also positively influence task efficacy.

Predictors of Stress in College Students

University students often face different stressful situations and preoccupations: the first contact with the university, the freedom of schedule organization, the selection of their master's degree, very selective fields, etc. The purpose of this study is to evaluate a model of vulnerability to stress in French college students. Stress factors were evaluated by a battery of six scales that was accessible online during 3 months. A total of 483 students, aged between 18 and 24 years (Mean = 20.23, standard deviation = 1.99), was included in the study. The results showed that 72.9, 86.3, and 79.3% of them were suffering from psychological distress, anxiety and depressive symptoms, respectively. More than half the sample was also suffering from low self-esteem (57.6%), little optimism (56.7%), and a low sense of self-efficacy (62.7%). Regression analyses revealed that life satisfaction, self-esteem, optimism, self-efficacy and psychological distress were the most important predictors of stress. These findings allow us to better understand stress-vulnerability factors in students and drive us to substantially consider them in prevention programs.

A survey of student nurses' attitudes toward help seeking for stress

BACKGROUND

Globally, stress in student nurses may have serious implications for health, absenteeism, and attrition. Despite this, there is scant research on student nurses' attitudes toward help seeking.

OBJECTIVES

To examine student nurses' attitudes toward stress and help-seeking.

DESIGN METHODS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS

A cross-sectional questionnaire survey design was employed to gather data from 219 student nurses at two large U.K. universities. Two-sample chi-square tests and Fisher's exact tests were used to analyze categorical associations between responses.

RESULTS

Most had experienced stress before, believed the incidence within the profession was high, and would disclose their own stress to family/friends rather than to colleagues or professional institutions. The most popular outpatient treatment choice was social support; few would choose formal advice. The most common factor influencing inpatient treatment choice was confidentiality; for many, this factor would also lead them to seek distant rather than local inpatient care. Encouragingly, most would not lose confidence in a stressed colleague.

CONCLUSIONS

Negative attitudes toward stress and help seeking may be entrenched even before training and may have a marked influence on how/whether students seek help. Nurse employers and educators should foster more supportive and accepting attitudes toward stress in order to tackle its unwanted consequences.