Nursing students' experiences of horizontal violence and occupational belonging during clinical placements

Background: Horizontal violence has negatively affected the students' active learning, interpersonal relationship, and occupational belonging. However, little attention has been paid to the relationship between horizontal violence and occupational belonging among nursing students. Objective: The objective of this study was to explore the frequency, types, perpetrators, effects, and responses of horizontal violence experienced by nursing students and the relationship between occupational belonging and horizontal violence. Materials and Methods: The present study used a descriptive, cross-sectional survey design. The data were collected from the 277 undergraduate nursing students selected by convenience sampling method using personal characteristics form, horizontal violence survey, and occupational belonging subscale at nursing faculty in Istanbul. Results: The first three horizontal violence behaviors experienced by nursing students were found, respectively: being forced to do trivial and unimportant work which are not the students' responsibility (84.1%), being exposed to sarcastic remarks by nurses (80.9%) and unwillingness of the nurse to help and lack of support (80.9%) and being ignored by nurses (77.3%). Nearly half of the students (48.4%) considered leaving nursing profession as a result of horizontal violence. There was a negative relation between horizontal violence and occupational belonging (P < 0.05). As horizontal violence scores increased, occupational belonging scores decreased. Conclusions: Findings from this study shown that horizontal violence decreasing occupational belonging, and so nursing students consider leaving nursing profession or education. Further studies are needed to better demonstrate addressing the horizontal violence bilaterally and the effective preventive interventions.