Management of students’ uncivil behaviors in academic environments

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Incivility has been raised as a growing concern and a hot topic in nursing education. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of a context-based educational intervention on the nursing students’ civility index and their perception of uncivil behaviors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This quasi-experimental study was done from 2019 to 2020 in Khorramabad, Iran. A context-based educational intervention focusing on problem-based scenarios was conducted for 4 weeks. Clark Civility Index for Students and Classmates (2017) and Clark Incivility Scale in the University Environment (2014) were used. Data were analyzed using Stata, descriptive statistics, and paired t-test. RESULTS: There was a significant difference between the mean score of students’ civility index before and after the intervention (8.31 points increase, P = 0.004). However, there was no significant difference between the mean score of the civility index for classmates before and after the intervention. Furthermore, the mean score of students’ perception of incivility after the intervention increased by 5.88 points, which confirmed the significant effect of the intervention in improving students’ understanding of uncivil behaviors (P = 0.018). CONCLUSIONS: Considering the effectiveness of the problem-based scenario along with other strategies such as journal club and self-learning in increasing the awareness of civility and improving the civility index, the use of these strategies is recommended in order to reduce incivility.