Congruence between graduating nursing students’ self-assessments and mentors’ assessments of students’ nurse competence

Abstract

Summary Self-assessment is widely used to assess competence in health care, although there is evidence of the weaknesses of self-assessment in the literature. In general, the process of self-assessment has been found to stimulate students' deep-level learning and problem-solving skills. Nursing students need to develop their self-assessment skills in order to identify their learning and ensure up-to-date outcomes and safe practice. This study aims to assess the congruence between graduating nursing students' self-assessment and their mentors' assessments concerning nurse competence with particular focus on nursing skills. The data were collected in November–December 2011 in the last week of final clinical placement of nurse education. Completed questionnaires were received from 60 students and 50 mentors. From these, 42 student–mentor pairs were matched for the sample of this study. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used in the data analysis. Comparisons between the assessments showed that students assessed their nurse competence as higher than their mentors (VAS 64.5±12.2 vs. 56.7±19.0). In nursing skills, the assessments were closer to each other (VAS 75.4±12.8 vs. 72.2±16.7); however, students' assessments still remained higher than those of mentors'. No congruent assessments were found between students and mentors. Compared to mentors' assessments, students overestimated their nurse competence. However, the results may be due to different understanding of nurse competence, and more research is needed on students' self-assessment by comparing students' assessments with those of peers, mentors and/or educators or knowledge tests. Nursing students should practise self-assessment during their nurse education. Mentors would also benefit practising in assessing students' nurse competence.