The effect of narrative-based ethics education on ageism and the preservation of human dignity in older adults' care among nursing students: a quasi-experimental study.

内容摘要

The increasing proportion of older adults in today's societies has created a growing need for specialized and ethical nursing care. One of the main challenges in geriatric care is ageism and the neglect of human dignity, both of which can compromise the quality of care. Providing ethics education, especially through interactive and reflective approaches such as storytelling can enhance nursing students' awareness and sensitivity toward the values and rights of older adults. This quasi-experimental study was conducted on 76 senior students divided into intervention and control groups. The intervention group participated in five two-hour educational sessions based on ethical storytelling, while the control group received only their routine internship training. Both groups completed the Ageism in Care Settings Scale and the Elderly Patients' Human Dignity Scale before, immediately after, and one month following the intervention. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 22, applying independent t-tests, chi-square tests, and repeated measures ANOVA at a significance level of 0.05. Before the intervention, no significant difference was found between groups in mean ageism scores (p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.275). However, significant differences emerged immediately after (p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.012) and one month later (p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.009). Similarly, there was no significant difference between groups in the "importance" dimension of dignity before the intervention (p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.607), while significant improvements were observed immediately (p&#x2009;<&#x2009;0.001) and one month after (p&#x2009;<&#x2009;0.001). Regarding the "observance" dimension of dignity, no significant difference was seen before (p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.490) or immediately after (p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.069), but a significant improvement was detected at one-month follow-up (p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.002). Ethical education through storytelling significantly reduced ageism and enhanced nursing students' understanding and observance of human dignity in elderly care. Incorporating narrative-based ethics education into nursing curricula is recommended as a complementary approach to improve ethical competence and address challenges associated with population aging. Registered at the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (www.irct.ir) with the number IRCT20250311065039N1 (Date 21.05.2025).