The Relationship Between Student Perceptions of Faculty Support and Student Perceptions of Clinical Competency

This study explored the relationship between student perceptions of faculty support and student perceptions of clinical competency in beginning and senior level nursing students. A total of 91 ethnically diverse, generic baccalaureate nursing students from a state funded university participated in the study. The participants completed Mozingo, Thomas, and Brooks\u27 (1995) Perceived Competency Scale (PCS), Shelton\u27s (2003) Perceived Faculty Support Scales (PFSS), and a demographic questionnaire. An independent t test determined that the observed mean difference between perceived competency scores in 46 beginning students (M=32.02) and 45 senior students (M=27.36) was statistically significant (t (89) =3.25,p\u3c.05). The students demonstrated high scores of perceived faculty support and demonstrated no difference between the beginning (M=94.82) and the senior (M=95.61) nursing students (t (87) =-.25,p\u3e.05). No statistically significant correlation was found between student perceptions of faculty support and their perceptions of clinical competency (r=-.20, p\u3e.05) in both groups. However, this study identified faculty behaviors that were perceived to enhance student achievement

Maternal Postpartum Role Collapse as a Theory of Postpartum Depression

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the development of a theory of maternal postpartum role collapse. The influences of traditional role theory and symbolic interactionism are presented. The development of the maternal postpartum role collapse theory emerged from the study of postpartum depression among African-American women (Amankwaa, 2000). Major components of the theory of postpartum maternal role collapse consist of role stress, role strain, and finally role collapse. A discussion of the extension of role theory to role collapse as it is related to the postpartum mother is offered as an explanation of postpartum depression