Self-Efficacy and Resilience in Baccalaureate Nursing Students

Abstract

The attrition of admitted students from nursing programs has been attributed to the perceived stress of nursing school. Students who possess the characteristics of self-efficacy and resilience may be persistent and therefore academically successful as demonstrated by test scores over the course of their education. In this article, the authors report on a study that explored self efficacy and resilience in relation to test scores among 136 baccalaureate nursing students in multiple courses during one, 16 week semester. No statistically significant differences were found in perceived self-efficacy or resilience total scores between early semester and late semester measurements. Significant differences were found on the Resilience Scale subscales of Perseverence and Existential Aloneness. Test scores were weakly correlated with resilience and self-efficacy scores.