[ effect of the assertiveness training program on nursing students' assertiveness skills]

ABSTRACT

Assertiveness is an important skill for nurses in order to successfully communicate with patients, families and colleagues. Assertiveness increases people's self-esteem and self-confidence, improves interpersonal communication, and leads to the development of personality and internal locus of control. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the assertiveness training program on nursing students' assertiveness skills. Using a quasi-experimental design, two out of three nursing classrooms held for students entering fall 2011 [n=55], and one out of two for those entering spring 2012 [n=34] were randomly selected. The former as the control group was pre-tested and post-tested after two weeks. The latter as the experimental group was undertaken the assertiveness training program and was tested similarly to the control group. The Gambrill and Richey assertiveness questionnaire along with some demographic questions were used to collect data. The data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The mean of assertiveness scores in the pre-tests in both groups did not show a significant difference [P=0.6]. While no statistically significant change in the control group [P=0.09] was reported, a significant increase in the scores of the experimental group was shown after the training program [P=0.005]. The assertiveness training program increased the students' level of assertiveness. It is recommended to investigate the effect of improving self-esteem, problem-solving and social communication skills on nursing students' level of assertiveness