Date

7-21-2026

Department

School of Nursing

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing (PhD)

Chair

Elizabeth Whorley

Keywords

critical care, androgogy, nursing students, qualitative, public health, motivation, education, phenomenology

Disciplines

Educational Leadership | Nursing

Abstract

Critical care nursing is a specialty that demands a high level of skill and dedication. In this high-stress, fast-paced environment, nurses must think fast and act decisively with sound clinical judgment and knowledge. The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological qualitative study was to understand the motivating factors that cause nurses to enter the field of critical care, as well as to explore the ways in which undergraduate nursing studies may be improved to better prepare future critical care nurses. Knowles’ adult learning theory was well suited for nursing students bound for a critical care path. Students at two different baccalaureate undergraduate schools of nursing in the southern United States participated in the study. The study included 13 interviews of students in the critical care track of the nursing program. Data were analyzed using Saldana’s method of coding of key phrases to identify common themes among participants. The four main themes that emerged were calling/mission, respect for the profession, efficient education, and sense of adventure. The participants relayed a sense of having a strong internal drive, a desire for a high level of efficiency and the modernization of education, as well as a sense of looking forward to an adventuresome career.

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