Can Grit Be Nurtured in Undergraduate Nursing Students?

Abstract

Grit, a positive psychological trait, is a character trait of great benefit to the practice of nursing. Nurses who exemplify a combination of excellence, determination, and compassion in their practice are often described as having grit. This article discusses the five major traits of grit and the development and nurturing of these traits in both nursing students and novice nurses. The topic of the development of grit is relevant to school nurses who find themselves in mentor roles with nursing students and with nurses new to school nursing.

Predictors and correlates of Saudi nursing students' grit and positive thinking amidst the COVID-19 pandemic

“…Positive thinking and grit are associated in several ways theoretically supported by the literature. Grit cannot be instantly learned or developed, but nursing students who are taught the importance of grit in school can cultivate this protective trait ( McCabe, 2016 ). Meanwhile, positive thinking like grit enables nursing students to overcome the stressful tasks associated with their nursing studies by fostering positive psychology that focuses on their inherent strengths ( McDermott et al, 2021 ).…”

Factors That Impact Measures of Grit among Nursing Students: A Journey Emblematic of the Koi Fish

“…These shortages are made worse with up to 25% of new nurses leaving the profession within five years of graduation [13,14]. Nurses, although shown to develop grit through their professional practice [15], may still leave due to workload, workplace culture, and emotional strain. Thus, there is a need for better insights into how to more adequately prepare students for the rigors of the nursing profession in the higher education setting.…”

“…Presently there exists very little research literature that purports to articulate the general levels of grit and those factors that may impact the grittiness of nursing students. The review conducted by Stoffel and Cain [16] identified 11 journal articles that were focussed on resilience and hardiness, however only one commentary article [15] specifically discussed and one [2] researched the impact of grit among nursing students. Although grit has been explored among general university populations and among military cadets where it was found to have a relatively positive impact in the US [1][2][3][4][5]17], there has been scant insight among nursing students, particularly in Australia.…”

Self-Efficacy, Grit and Perceptions of Rural Employment: What Changes Occur After Graduation?

“…Although widely examined, including among medical students (Reed et al, 2017), Grit remains a recent construct in both the nursing profession and specifically Australia . Nurses, have been shown to develop grit through their professional practice (McCabe, 2016), and among nursing students, significantly higher levels of grit have been observed among third-year students compared to their first-year counterparts . However, there has been limited examination of grit levels further increasing as third year student's transition to registered nurses, or if the transition itself has an impact on measures of grit.…”