Understanding the clinical nurses’ perceptions and coping strategies of nursing research: a qualitative study

Nursing research plays a vital role in advancing clinical practice and improving patient outcomes. However, many clinical nurses face significant challenges in conducting or participating in research. Understanding nurses’ perceptions and coping strategies regarding nursing research is crucial for promoting research engagement and strengthening nursing capacity. To explore clinical nurses’ perceptions of nursing research and to identify the coping strategies they adopt to deal with related challenges. A descriptive qualitative study was conducted in a tertiary grade-A hospital in China. Sixteen clinical nurses with varied years of professional experience were recruited through purposive sampling. Semi-structured individual interviews were conducted with the participants between August 26 and September 5, 2025. A pre-designed interview guide was used to explore their perceptions of nursing research and the coping strategies they adopted. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Three major themes with several subthemes were identified: (1) Nursing research as a source of professional growth, reflected how nurses perceived research as contributing to professional development and career opportunities; (2) Nursing research as a source of professional challenge, highlighted barriers including cognitive and skill limitations, motivational and psychological obstacles, time and workload pressures, and insufficient data and resources; and (3) Responses to research-related challenges, encompassed coping strategies such as adjusting mindset and fostering research resilience, managing time effectively, and optimizing resource utilization, among others. Clinical nurses acknowledged the importance of nursing research but encounter multiple barriers to participation. The coping strategies identified not only demonstrate how nurses address these challenges but also offer practical references for others. These findings provide implications for hospital managers and policymakers in developing targeted interventions to enhance nurses’ research capacity and engagement.