Nursing students' socialisation to emotion management during early clinical placement experiences: A qualitative study

Aims and objectives To explore nursing students' subjective experience of emotions during first-year clinical placements, strategies used to manage their emotions and socialisation to emotion management. Background Emotion regulation is a key source of stress for early career and student nurses. Clinical placement experiences can elicit strong emotions in nursing students; however, they may be unprepared for the challenge of regulating their emotions in real-world practice. How nursing students learn to manage their emotions in the clinical setting, whether they receive support for this, and how they are socialised to manage their emotions during placements are not well known. Design An exploratory qualitative study. Methods Semi-structured interviews (n = 19) were conducted with first-year nursing students, exploring their experiences of emotion management during clinical placement. Interview transcripts were analysed using conventional qualitative content analysis. Reporting adheres to the COREQ Checklist. Results Interactions with patients and staff often elicited negative feelings. Structured guidance for emotion management by supervising staff was scarce. Students used informal self-reflection and interpretation to guide emotion management. Conclusions In the absence of strategic socialisation and formal support for effective emotion management, students used emotional labour strategies that can negatively impact on well-being. A focus on adequately preparing nursing students for emotion work is a necessary component of classroom and clinical learning environments. Structured debriefing during clinical placements may provide a relevant context to discuss emotions arising during clinical work and to learn emotion management strategies. Relevance to clinical practice Emotional competence, a fundamental ability for registered nurses and students, supports personal health maintenance and strengthens professional practice. Students are exposed to clinical environments and interpersonal encounters that evoke strong emotions. They need situated learning strategies and formal support to develop knowledge and strengthen capability for emotion management, as this is essential for promoting professional development and patient care.