A Measurement of the Environmental Literacy of Nursing Students for a Sustainable Environment

Abstract

Environmentally literate citizenship is a lifelong learning process that aims to develop citizens who possess the knowledge, skills, and commitment to make responsible decisions that will affect the quality of the environment. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the environmental literacy levels of nursing students in terms of a sustainable environment by considering the dimensions of environmental literacy. This study was also aimed at understanding the correlation between the dimensions of environmental literacy and revealing the factors affecting the dimensions of environmental literacy. This research was designed as a descriptive study using a survey model. A total of 278 nursing students participated in this research. It was revealed that the students obtained a high score for the use and concern dimensions of environmental literacy, and their attitudes towards the environment were moderate; however, the nursing students had the lowest scores for the environmental knowledge component, which indicates that they need support in improving their environmental knowledge. There were also statistically significant differences in the dimensions of environmental literacy based on gender and whether the students had taken environment-related courses. All the dimensions of environmental literacy were found to be positively correlated with each other, ranging from low to moderate correlations.

The relationship between nursing students' environmental literacy and awareness of Global Climate Change

“…A similar finding was found by Cengiz and Bahar (2023). On the other hand, Kapan and Gurel (2022) and Ors (2022) showed that nursing students had a moderate level of environmental literacy. The high level of environmental literacy of the students suggests that it may be associated with the fact that they were living in one of the largest metropolises in the world, where environmental problems are more common, and they easily access to news about these problems through the internet and social media.…”

“…Environmental literacy refers to one's capacity to demonstrate his or her knowledge about the environment through behavior (Atabek‐Yiğit et al., 2014). An individual with high environmental literacy is sensitive to environmental concerns and takes action to collect and evaluate environmental information and prevent environmental degradation (Kapan and Gürel, 2022; Örs, 2022). Some studies showed that the attitudes of nursing students toward environmental problems were positive (Cruz et al., 2018; Gök and Kilic, 2021; Sayan and Kaya, 2016).…”

“…Some studies showed that the attitudes of nursing students toward environmental problems were positive (Cruz et al., 2018; Gök and Kilic, 2021; Sayan and Kaya, 2016). However, a few studies determined the future nurses' level of environmental literacy (Cengiz and Bahar, 2023; Kapan and Gürel, 2022; Örs, 2022). Environmental education is of great importance in increasing environmentally literate individuals.…”

“…In the nursing literature, it was found that the nursing students’ environmental awareness, their attitudes toward environmental problems, and their knowledge and attitudes toward climate change were investigated (Ergin et al., 2021; Kapan and Gürel, 2022; Örs, 2022; Karahan‐Okuroğlu, 2012; Ryan et al., 2020). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study examining the correlation between environmental literacy and awareness of climate change.…”

Spirituality-based environmental literacy among prospective biology teacher in Indonesia: Analysis based on gender, accreditation, and semester-level aspects

“…This is because the level of SEL tends to vary between individuals. Anyone can have good SEL, regardless of gender (Ha et al, 2023;Lloyd-Strovas et al, 2018;Mardiani et al, 2021;Örs, 2022;Parwati et al, 2021;Putra et al, 2021). Several things such as educational factors and environmental awareness are related to strengthening one's SEL (Aminrad et al, 2013;Debrah et al, 2021;Edsand & Broich, 2020;Flavian, 2016;Ha et al, 2022;Kuthe et al, 2020).…”