Effect of a Multimodal LEARN-Based Metacognitive Training Program on Nurses’ Clinical Belongingness: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Background A diminished sense of belonging among nurses within healthcare organizations has emerged as a significant challenge, underscoring the need to identify influencing factors.This study examined the effect of enhancing metacognitive beliefs via the multimodal LEARN method on nurses' clinical belongingness.Methods This quasi-experimental, one-group pretest-posttest design included 48 nurses randomly selected from hospitals in Mahabad.Participants completed the Wells & Cartwright-Hatton Metacognition Questionnaire (1997) and the Levett-Jones et al.Clinical Belongingness Scale (2009).Inclusion criteria comprised a bachelor's degree (or higher) in nursing, current employment as a nurse, at least three years' professional experience, and absence of concurrent interventions targeting metacognitive beliefs or diagnosed psychological disorders.Data analysis was conducted in SPSS v22 using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, ANOVA, and independent t-test. ResultsThe multimodal LEARN intervention significantly increased both clinical belongingness and metacognitive belief scores among participants.ANOVA indicated that workplace unit, age, and education level had no significant effect on belongingness.The independent t-test revealed a significant gender difference, with female nurses reporting higher levels of clinical belongingness compared with male nurses.Conclusion These findings suggest that enhancing metacognitive beliefs through the multimodal LEARN method has a positive effect on nurses' clinical belongingness.Accordingly, strategies to strengthen perceptions of professional competence, promote psychological well-being, and deliver structured educational workshops and training programs to develop metacognitive beliefs and foster supportive work environments may effectively enhance nurses' sense of belonging and overall mental health.