Socially assistive robots in health and social care: Acceptance and cultural factors. Results from an exploratory international online survey.

AIM: This study explored the views of an international sample of registered nurses and midwives working in health and social care concerning socially assistive robots (SARs), and the relationship between dimensions of culture and rejection of the idea that SARs had benefits in these settings. METHODS: An online survey was used to obtain rankings of (among other topics) the extent to which SARs have benefits for health and social care. It also asked for free text responses regarding any concerns about SARs. RESULTS: Most respondents were overwhelmingly positive about SARs' benefits. A small minority strongly rejected this idea, and qualitative analysis of the objections raised by them revealed three major themes: things might go wrong, depersonalization, and patient-related concerns. However, many participants who were highly accepting of the benefits of SARs expressed similar objections. Cultural dimensions of long-term orientation and uncertainty avoidance feature prominently in technology acceptance research. Therefore, the relationship between the proportion of respondents from each country who felt that SARs had no benefits and each country's ratings on long-term orientation and uncertainty avoidance were also examined. A significant positive correlation was found for long-term orientation, but not for uncertainty avoidance. CONCLUSION: Most respondents were positive about the benefits of SARs, and similar concerns about their use were expressed both by those who strongly accepted the idea that they had benefits and those who did not. Some evidence was found to suggest that cultural factors were related to rejecting the idea that SARs had benefits.

Enactment of compassionate leadership by nursing and midwifery managers: results from an international online survey.

AIM: To explore the views of an international sample of nursing and midwifery managers concerning attributes that they associate with compassionate management. METHOD: A cross-sectional online survey. Using a snowballing sampling method, 1217 responses were collected from nursing and midwifery managers in 17 countries. A total of complete 933 responses to a question related to which actions and behaviours indicated that a manager was exercising compassionate leadership were analysed for this paper. First, content analysis of the responses was conducted, and second, a relative distribution of the identified themes for the overall sample and for each participating country was calculated. RESULTS: Six main themes were identified describing the attributes of a compassionate leader: (1) Virtuous support, (2) Communication, (3) Personal virtues of the manager, (4) Participatory communication, (5) Growth/flourishing/ nurturing and (6) Team cohesion. The first three themes mentioned above collectively accounted for 63% of the responses, and can therefore be considered to be the most important characteristics of compassionate management behaviour. CONCLUSION: The key indicators of compassionate management in nursing and midwifery which were identified emphasise approachability, active and sensitive listening, sympathetic responses to staff members' difficulties (especially concerning child and other caring responsibilities), active support of and advocacy for the staff team and active problem solving and conflict resolution. While there were differences between the countries' views on compassionate healthcare management, some themes were widely represented among different countries' responses, which suggest key indicators of compassionate management that apply across cultures.

The Importance of Being a Compassionate Leader: The Views of Nursing and Midwifery Managers From Around the World.

INTRODUCTION: Despite the importance of compassionate leadership in health care, many of the existing publications do not account for the effect of culture. The aim of this study is to explore the views of nursing and midwifery managers from different countries in relation to the definition, advantages, and importance of compassion. METHODOLOGY: A cross-sectional, descriptive, exploratory online survey was conducted across 17 countries, containing both closed and open-ended questions. Data from N = 1,217 respondents were analyzed using a directed hybrid approach focusing only on qualitative questions related to compassion-giving. RESULTS: Four overarching themes capture the study's results: (1) definition of compassion, (2) advantages and importance of compassion for managers, (3) advantages and importance of compassion for staff and the workplace, and (4) culturally competent and compassionate leadership. DISCUSSION: Innovative research agendas should pursue further local qualitative empirical research to inform models of culturally competent and compassionate leadership helping mangers navigate multiple pressures and be able to transculturally resonate with their staff and patients.

Predicting academic success based on perseverance and passion for long-term goals (grit) among nursing students: Is there a cultural context?

BACKGROUND: The grit concept encompasses passion, i.e., the degree in which people maintain their passion for the same goal over long periods of time, and perseverance, i.e., the degree to which people make an effort to achieve the same goal over time. Studies show that people with higher grit have better outcomes in a variety of areas, including academic achievements. OBJECTIVES: To examine whether grit may be used as an admission tool for predicting academic success and non-dropout among nursing students at a college, and whether it can be identified in a cultural context (Jewish and Arab students). DESIGN: A descriptive, exploratory study was employed. SETTING: The study was implemented in the Department of Nursing at a college in Israel. PARTICIPANTS: 237 nursing students in their second, third, or fourth year of studies participated in the study. RESULTS: Grit meant that on average, scores out of 5 were quite high (passion = 3.56; perseverance = 4.00), with students rating themselves as being highly passionate about their studies and having high academic perseverance. Out of 100, the average college grade and clinical grade were relatively high as well (M = 84.66, range 68-95; M = 91.05, range 75-100 respectively), and were positively and significantly correlated. Significant weak positive correlations were found between the average college grade, passion scores, and total grit. No relationships were found for the clinical grade. The average college grade was found to be higher among Jewish students than among Arab ones, and higher among students who were born in Israel. Higher passion and higher total grit scores were predictive of a higher average college grade. CONCLUSIONS: Passion and perseverance are qualities that may be associated with health professionals. Findings show cultural differences regarding grit. Therefore, larger studies are encouraged, in order to investigate such differences. Whether grit should be included in student assessment models remains to be determined.