Relationship Between Personality and Achievement in Nursing Student

I S S U E S A N D IN N O V A T I O N S I N N U R S I N G E D U C A T I O N

A path model of factors influencing the academic performance of nursing students
Richard Ofori BEd MSc RNT RMN
Lecturer, School of Nursing, University of Salford, Manchester, UK

and John P. Charlton BSc PhD
Research Fellow, Psychology and Life Sciences Subject Group, Bolton Institute, Bolton, UK

Submitted for publication 30 March 2001 Accepted for publication 13 February 2002

Correspondence: Richard Ofori, School of Nursing, University of Salford, Peel House, Albert Street, Eccles, Manchester M30 ONN, UK. E-mail: [e-mail]

O F O R I R . & C H A R L T O N J .P . ( 2 0 0 2 )

Journal of Advanced Nursing 38(5), 507–515

A path model of factors influencing the academic performance of nursing students Aims. The aim of this study was to build and test a model describing some of the psychological processes underlying nursing students’ academic performance. The model hypothesized that age and entry qualifications influence students’ academic motivation (locus of control, academic worries, self-efficacy, and expectations), and that this in turn affects their decisions to seek support, which subsequently influences their academic performance. Rationale and background. A literature search showed that previous academic motivation research is piecemeal. The present work sought to integrate previous findings into a coherent framework as a way of advancing our understanding of the complex interactive nature of the factors influencing student performance. Method. Path analysis was performed on data obtained from questionnaires and university records for 315 students undertaking a preregistration diploma course in nursing at a university in the Northwest of England. Results. Support-seeking was more predictive of student performance than entry qualifications. Support-seeking also mediated the age–performance relationship: greater willingness to seek support led to the better academic

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