| Critical thinking is an important aspect of nursing practice; however, nursing program graduates begin practice with less than adequate critical thinking skills. A quantitative study to determine whether any differences exist between students who graduate from traditional or accelerated baccalaureate of science nursing programs using the California Critical Thinking Skills Test (CCTST) was conducted using a total sample of 62 students from the Southwestern United States. A 2-way ANOVA of the data revealed no statistically significant differences in overall critical thinking skills between the two study cohorts. Differences were found in the subscale scores of induction and deduction based on subject age, years of work experience, and years of post-high school education. Regression analysis demonstrated subject age as the strongest predictor of overall critical thinking skill. Recommendations for nursing educators include incorporating cognitive problem-based strategies for building critical thinking skills in nursing students and focusing recruitment efforts on older students with a work history and prior college education. Suggestions for further research include replication of the study with a larger sample size, and the use of different critical thinking instruments. |
