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The Effect of Situation Puzzle Games on Nursing Students' Death Anxiety and Meaning in Life

Not Applicable
Recruiting
Conditions
Death Anxiety
Registration Number
NCT06991621
Lead Sponsor
China Medical University, China
Brief Summary

Goal of this interventional study

The purpose of this research is to investigate the effects of a scenario-based puzzle educational game on death anxiety and meaning in life among nursing students. It aims to answer the following key questions:

Can the scenario-based puzzle educational game enhance nursing students' sense of meaning in life?

Can the scenario-based puzzle educational game reduce death anxiety in nursing students?

What are nursing students' experiences and perceptions of this educational game?

Study design Researchers will compare the intervention group (participating in the game) with a control group (receiving death education manuals) to evaluate the effectiveness of the game-based intervention.

Participants will:

Be recruited through campus posters

Be randomly assigned to either the intervention or control group and complete baseline questionnaires

In the control group: Receive death education manuals twice weekly for 3 weeks

In the intervention group: Participate in group sessions (5 students per group) to play the scenario-based puzzle game twice weekly for 3 weeks

Complete follow-up questionnaires and participate in qualitative interviews regarding their experiences with manual-based education or the game intervention after the 3-week intervention period

Detailed Description

Not available

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
RECRUITING
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
70
Inclusion Criteria
  • Third-year full-time undergraduate nursing students
  • Completed clinical observation training but not yet entered clinical internship phase
  • Aged ≥18 years
  • Provide informed consent and voluntarily participate in the study
Exclusion Criteria
  • Participated in similar death education interventions within the past 3 months
  • Diagnosed with severe mental or psychological disorders
  • Currently on a leave of absence (academic or personal)

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Death AnxietyWeek 0, Week 3

A 15-item self-report scale developed by psychologist Templer (1967/1970) measuring death-related distress.

Dimensions: Affective (Items 1,3,10,13,14), Stress/Pain (Items 4,5,6,9,11), Time Awareness (Items 8,12), Cognitive (Items 2,7,15)

Scoring: Dichotomous (Yes/No) with 9 forward-scored and 6 reverse-scored items (Items 2,3,5,6,7,16\*). Total score range: 0-15 (higher = greater anxiety).

Reliability: Test-retest reliability (3-week) = 0.83; KR-20 = 0.76 (original English version).

Meaning in LifeWeek 0, Week 3

A 10-item scale (Steger et al.) assessing two dimensions:

Presence of Meaning (5 items): Perceived life purpose

Search for Meaning (5 items): Active pursuit of meaning

Scoring: 7-point Likert (1="Strongly Disagree" to 7="Strongly Agree"). Higher scores indicate stronger meaning.

Reliability: Cronbach's α = 0.878 (total), 0.850 (Presence), 0.907 (Search)

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

School of Nursing, China Medical University

🇨🇳

Shenyang, Liaoning, China

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