Interviews with 114 beginning nursing students were distilled into an inductive framework of professional nursing identity based on their definitions of nursing. Multiple categories were classified into three themes: nursing as noun, verb, and transaction. Results show the extent of students' understanding of the profession. (Contains 21…

Nursing students (n=27) wrote descriptions of the experience of choosing nursing as a career. Influences included intense desire to help others, professional reward, prior work experiences, family and friends in health care occupations, observing nurses in action, something lacking in previous career choices, and fascination with science and the…

Responses from 624 nursing education administrators indicated that a majority require legal content in nursing curricula, mostly integrated rather than stand-alone courses. Primarily full-time faculty teach legal content; in graduate programs these faculty have doctorates or juris doctorates. Lectures and case studies are the predominant teaching…

Survey responses from 315 Norwegian nursing students indicated that 45% had wanted to pursue other subjects for which university placements were limited. Choice of nursing careers were motivated by desire to help others and do something useful. Their heterogeneous characteristics, motivations, and goals posed problems for recruitment and…

Graduate nursing students (n=21) wrote descriptions of how they used intuition in clinical practice. Undergraduates in a nursing research course used these exemplars to learn about content analysis and develop their own intuitive thinking. (SK)

Using reflective thinking to develop a professional philosophy helps nursing students view themselves as future professionals. In introductory courses, discussions and case studies relating theory to practice provide opportunities for reflective thinking. (SK)

In interviews with 16 female nursing students, caring was a motivator, but power and empowerment for self and others were the most fully developed reasons for choosing nursing. They showed scant interest in practical motivations such as salary, security, and working conditions. (SK)

High school counselors (n=95) identified characteristics they considered important for nursing. Leadership and academic achievement were rated less important than for other careers. compassion, kindness, and obedience were considered important but not decision making or assertiveness. (SK)