Does Mindset Matter: The Perceptions Pre-Licensure Nursing Students Have Regarding Mindset and Academic Success

Nursing programs need to graduate more students to increase the potential number of practicing nurses and help the nursing shortage. However, with high attrition rates, nursing programs are looking for ways to promote student success. Many factors lead to students not finishing a nursing program and nurse educators need to develop innovative ways to help students succeed. Identifying characteristics that make students successful is key to reducing attrition rates. One characteristic that a nurse educator can identify in students is a growth mindset. Mindset is formed by students’ beliefs and experiences, by having a growth mindset, one believes their intelligence can change and improve. The purpose of this descriptive qualitative study was to explore pre-licensure nursing students’ perceptions of mindset and academic success. The following research questions guided this study: Q1 What does mindset mean to pre-licensure nursing students? Q2 What strategies do pre-licensure nursing students perceive as helpful in the development of a growth mindset? Q3 What type of connection do pre-licensure nursing students perceive between having a growth mindset and academic success? Using the mindset theory to guide the study, I used focus group interviews to capture the perceptions and experiences participants had with growth mindset. Eighteen entry level pre-licensure nursing students from across the United States participated in this qualitative, descriptive study. Semi-structured focus group interviews were conducted, recorded, and analyzed. Five themes were identified: (a) resiliency, (b) readiness to learn, (c) effort equals results, (d) embracing learning in every moment and place, and (e) learning for real-world impact. Being the first qualitative study regarding growth mindset and academic success, the study provided unique knowledge and increased the body of knowledge in nursing education. First, pre-licensure nursing students believed that having a network of support helped them in the development of a growth mindset. Second, most all the nursing students believed learning was an active process that never stops. Lastly, they discussed how being able to apply what they had learned to a patient setting and being a competent nurse was truly academic success. The discussion provided potential implications and recommendations for nurse educators to encourage the development of a growth mindset in nursing students. By encouraging the development of a growth mindset in nursing students nurse educators can help prepare competent nurses ready for practice.