Self-esteem of first-year students at the beginning of their nursing education

What is it about?

Self-esteem is important for psychological well-being of people and professional competence of nurses, but it seems to decrease during education. We wanted to study it at the very beginning of education to have a starting point, and to identify influence factors. We noted a relationship with dropout at the end of the first year.

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Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash

Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash

Why is it important?

A better understanding of nursing student self-esteem is crucial, as it is an important factor in their professionalization process. While previous studies have measured it cross-sectionally— comparing different academic years—or, less frequently, longitudinally, they often measure it at the end of the semester or the academic year. Looking at the baseline situation would help educational institutions identify when, and to whom, they should offer additional support. Including a large number of participants from a variety of high schools has made our results generalizable to bachelor's students in nursing in French-speaking Belgium, and to those in other countries with similar educational conditions.

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