Dialogues with human books to promote professional commitment and learning among first-year nursing students: A mixed-methods study

Background: First-year nursing students in Taiwan typically have a limited understanding of nursing as they initiate their studies. Curriculum demands can be overpowering, and students may become averse to developing a positive commitment toward nursing. One strategy to assist in inculcating professional commitment is the integration of a Living Library with "human books." Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the effects of interacting with human books on first-year nursing students in terms of their professional commitment, learning motivation, and learning career adaptability. Design: A mixed-methods, pretest-posttest study design was used. Methods: The convenience sampling method was used to recruit 46 students with the following eligible criteria: enrolled in an introductory nursing course, first-year students in the 2022-2023 academic year, and willingness to participate in the study. Participants interacted twice for 20-30 min using self-regulated learning with human books. Quantitative outcomes were professional commitment, learning motivation, and learning career adaptability using the IBM SPSS Statistics V28.0 for statistical analysis. Qualitative outcomes came from the content analysis of written feedback. Results: Participants experienced a significant improvement in their professional commitment, learning motivation, and learning career adaptability after engaging with human books. Contents analysis of feedback showed four categories: Professed value for nursing, motivation to pursue a career in nursing, reflection and transformation, and positive career possibilities and expectations. Conclusion: Human books offer a novel strategy for nursing students to learn from real-life experiences to enhance professional commitment and learning for a nursing career.