Unveiling the Relationships of Professional Identity, Values and Communication Competence in Nursing Students' Clinical Practice Behaviours: A Cross-Sectional Study and Mediation Model Analysis.

Aims: This study aimed to explore factors related to clinical practice behaviours and investigate the role of clinical communication competence in promoting professional identity/values and clinical practice behaviours among nursing students.

Methods: Between July and August 2023, a cross-sectional online survey were conducted among 791 nursing students undergoing clinical internships at a tertiary hospital in Hunan Province, China, using convenience sampling methods. The Professional Identity Questionnaire for Nurse Students, the Nurses Professional Values Scale-Revised, the Clinical Communication Competence Scale and the Clinical Practice Behaviours Scale were used to assess students' professional identity, professional values, clinical communication competence and clinical practice behaviours, respectively. Descriptive statistics, t-tests, ANOVA and Pearson's correlation were performed. Mediation models explored relationships between professional identity, professional values, communication competence and clinical practice behaviours, with communication competence as a mediator. Indirect effects were tested using bias-corrected bootstrapping (5000 iterations) via the PROCESS macro.

Results: The findings revealed that professional identity and professional values directly and indirectly influenced clinical practice behaviours in nursing students. Moreover, clinical communication competence was identified as a significant mediator in the relationship between professional identity (indirect effect = 0.11; 95% confidence interval [CI]: [0.09, 0.14], accounting for 23.4% of the total effect)/values (indirect effect = -0.13; 95% CI: [0.10, 0.17], accounting for 27.7% of the total effect) and clinical practice behaviours. Professional identity, professional values, clinical communication competence and clinical practice behaviours were found to have positive correlations with one another (Pearson's r ranged: 0.45-0.72, all ps < 0.05).

Conclusion: This study sheds light on factors influencing nursing students' clinical practice behaviour, including professional identity, professional values and clinical communication competence. These insights can inform evidence-based strategies for nursing education and practice, facilitating targeted interventions to enhance students' professional development and clinical competence.

Patient Or Public Contribution: No patient or public contribution was involved.