Moral development and unethical behavior among nursing students

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of the level of moral judgment to the incidence of selfreported unethical classroom and clinical behavior among nursing students. Based on Kohlberg's theory of moral development, a correlational survey design was used to collect data from a sample of 63 junior and senior students in a baccalaureate nursing program. The P% score of the Rest Defining Issues Test had a negative correlation of 0.243 (P = .027) with unethical clinical behaviors. Additionally, there were significant correlations between grade point average and the following variables: positively for age (P = .050) and P% score (P = .000) and negatively for unethical classroom behaviors (P = 003). Results of this study suggest that nurse-educators carefully monitor the behavior of students in the classroom and in clinical settings, provide information to increase the awareness of ethical consideration, and use strategies that have the potential for increasing the ability for moral reasoning.