Nursing Students' Prejudice and Empathy Levels towards Obese Individuals
Öz
Objective: This study was conducted to evaluate the levels of prejudice and empathy of nursing students towards obese individuals and to examine the relationship between prejudice and empathy. Methods: This descriptive–correlational cross-sectional study was conducted among 191 nursing students at a foundation university. Data was collected by the researchers between January 2, 2020 and March 3, 2020. Personal Information Form, GAMS-27 Obesity Prejudice Scale and Basic Empathy Scale were used to collect data. Results: In the study, the students' total GAMS-27 Obesity Prejudice Scale mean score was found to be 81.27±11.45, and the total Basic Empathy Scale mean score was found to be 73.39±12.98. When the score distribution according to the GAMS-27 Obesity Prejudice Scale cut-off points was examined, it was found that the majority of the students (50.3%) tended to be prejudiced against obese individuals, while the students who received communication and empathic skills training had lower prejudice levels (p<0.05). A weak positive correlation was found between the GAMS-27 Obesity Prejudice Scale and the Emotional Subdimension score of the Basic Empathy Scale (p=0.016). Conclusion: The fact that nurses have a prejudiced attitude towards obese individuals will negatively affect health care. For this reason, it is thought that intervention studies should be carried out to reduce the prejudice against obese individuals in the educational process of nursing students who are the nurses of the future.
Anahtar Kelimeler
Kaynakça
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