A comparative study of the education, experience, and decision making characteristics between baccalaureate and associate degree nurses

The purpose of the study was to compare the relationship between educational preparation, clinical experience, and the nurses’ self-perceived decision making characteristics. The characteristics analyzed were frequency of making decisions, difficulty in making decisions, influential factors in decision making, and process used in decision making. The retrospective correlational design used a convenience sample of 93 associate and baccalaureate degree nurses from hospitals within Midwestern United States. Informed consent for the study was assumed by the completion and return of the demographic data form and the two questionnaires: Clinical Decision Making in Nursing (Jenkins, 1985) and the Decision Making Questionnaire (Pardue, 1987). Confidentiality of the subjects was maintained through the use of coding. There were no foreseeable risks or discomforts.Eight hypotheses were developed and analyzed by multivariate analysis of variance and post-hoc univariate analysis. The results indicated no significant differences in frequency of making decisions, difficulty in making decisions or process used in decision making between baccalaureate and associate degree nurses. The only significant difference in influential factors was in the factor of “stress”. No significant differences existed for frequency, difficulty, or process used between experienced and inexperienced nurses. However, a significant difference was found in the influential factors of decision making between the two groups. The areas of difference were “experience” and “role-modeling”.