Assessment of nursing students’ research competencies with competency-based education

Introduction

There is a preponderance of studies on nurses’ research competency and its benefits to the nursing profession. However, investigations on nursing students’ research competency in the context of competency-based education (CBE) remain underreported.

Objective

This study investigated the predictors and associations of Saudi nursing students’ research competencies using CBE approach.

Methods

This research used a descriptive, cross-sectional design. A total enumeration sampling or census of 347 nursing students from three Saudi Arabian state universities who had finished the nursing research course was used. The 24-item Research Competency Scale for Nursing Students (RCS-N) was utilized to collect data, which was then analyzed using the chi-squared test and logistic regression.

Results

Most nursing students were familiar with the nursing research process. There is a strong link between research competencies and age and marks obtained in nursing research course. Age and nursing research course marks (A+/A) were significant predictors of nursing research competency. Thus, students who earned A+/A grades were three times more likely to be competent than those who had lower grades. Similarly, nursing students over the age of 20 years are twice as likely to be research competent as those under 20.

Conclusion

As there are few reports on nursing research competency, CBE helps nursing research instructors create relevant intended learning outcomes (ILOs), allowing them to assess each research step's ILOs more efficiently. Additionally, incorporating functionalist, behaviorist, and constructivist learning theories into the CBE in nursing research course will be more beneficial.