Empathy Training for Undergraduate Nursing Students Through Combined Didactic, Practical and AI-based Methods
试验速览
- 阶段
- 不适用
- 状态
- 招募中
- 入组人数
- 108
- 试验地点
- 1
- 主要终点
- Interpersonal Reactivity Index
研究概览
简要总结
This study aims to examine the effects of a newly developed training program on the empathy of undergraduate nursing students. The objectives are: (i) designing and implementing an User Interface (UI) using Unity featuring 3D virtual clients representing individuals with physical disabilities, bodily discomforts, and psychosocial disturbances, paired with a chatbot interface for interactive questions-and-answers; (ii) developing a brief empathy training program incorporating AI-generated virtual clients into traditional teaching methods, including didactic lectures, skills rehearsal, mindfulness-based training, and practice with AI-generated virtual clients; and (iii) assessing the impact of this training program on the empathetic attitude, empathetic communication skills, and cognitive flexibility of undergraduate nursing students.
详细描述
Various traditional pedagogies have been used in empathy training for nursing students. For instance, didactic lectures often aim at introducing the scientific information of empathy, while experiential learning, such as role-playing and standardized patient interactions, are used to facilitate learning through reflection on doing and minimizing stereotypes. Additionally, mindfulness-based training is employed to promote self-awareness and cultivate essential traits in healthcare students and clinicians, such as being nonjudgmental, kind, compassionate, and altruistic. However, a previous systematic review revealed inconsistent findings about the effects of traditional pedagogies and highlighted the need for innovative teaching approaches from healthcare educators.
Perspective-taking is a crucial empathy-related phenomenon that refers to the capability of comprehending the intentions of others. Despite the use of experiential learning strategies in previous empathy training, previous studies are not without limitations. For instance, role-play and standardized patients in developing clinical empathy have been criticized for limited authenticity, variations in skills and consistency of participants, inadequate quality feedback, and resource intensity. Recent studies have also explored the use of virtual reality as an experiential learning component to render experiences of immersion, presence, and embodiment. However, these strategies cannot cover a wide range of clinical situations or provide timely feedback.
In recent years, technological advancements have provided new opportunities for innovative educational strategies. One such promising approach is the use of artificial intelligence (AI)-generated virtual clients in empathy training. AI-generated virtual clients can simulate a wide range of client interactions, offering a repeatable environment to practice and cultivate empathy. The integration of virtual clients into empathy training programs has the potential to revolutionize healthcare education. Thus, this research proposal aims to examine the effects of a brief empathy training program utilizing AI-generated virtual clients and traditional pedagogies on the empathy levels of undergraduate nursing students. By incorporating AI-generated virtual clients into newly developed empathy training protocol, along with elements of didactic lectures and mindfulness-based training, the investigators hypothesize that students will experience a significant improvement in empathetic attitude, and then leading to better empathetic communication skills and cognitive flexibility.
研究设计
- 研究类型
- Interventional
- 分配方式
- Randomized
- 干预模型
- Parallel
- 主要目的
- Other
- 盲法
- Single (Outcomes Assessor)
入排标准
- 年龄范围
- 18 Years 至 —（Adult, Older Adult）
- 性别
- All
- 接受健康志愿者
- 是
入选标准
- •undergraduate students enrolled in a nursing program
- •no previous experience with empathy-related training
- •no previous experience working in healthcare settings
- •age 18 years or above
- •native Chinese speakers.
排除标准
- •- are or were the main carers of people who are disabled or chronically ill because empathy may be promoted through experience.
研究组 & 干预措施
Control
Intervention
Participants in the intervention group will undertake two sessions, each lasting four hours, of empathy training over a one-week period with group size of 6 to 8 participants. The first training session consists of a 4-hour didactic component focused on empathy frameworks and communication strategies. The second training session includes a 2-hour mindfulness training component followed by a 2-hour AI demonstration and practice component where participants engage with virtual client scenarios.
干预措施: Empathy training (Other)
结局指标
主要结局
Interpersonal Reactivity Index
时间窗: Baseline assessment (prior to any training), (ii) immediate post-training assessment (immediately after the final training session, end of week 1), and (iii) 1-month follow-up assessment (approximately 4 weeks after the final training session).
The Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) will be used to assess self-reported empathetic attitude. IRI consists of 4 subscale with 28 items rating on a 5 - point Likert scale (0 - 4). Score ranges from 0 - 112, higher score means better empathy.
次要结局
- Consultation and Relational Empathy(Baseline assessment (prior to any training), (ii) immediate post-training assessment (immediately after the final training session, end of week 1), and (iii) 1-month follow-up assessment (approximately 4 weeks after the final training session).)
- Cognitive Flexibility Inventory(Baseline assessment (prior to any training), (ii) immediate post-training assessment (immediately after the final training session, end of week 1), and (iii) 1-month follow-up assessment (approximately 4 weeks after the final training session).)
研究者
Dr Liu Tai Wa
Associate Professor
Hong Kong Metropolitan University