Longitudinal study of Finnish nursing students' preferences for knowledge in nursing practice.

The curriculum of Finnish nursing education is based on nursing science. The aim is to educate nursing students to internalize the logic, concepts and major subject areas of nursing science. The purpose of this longitudinal study was to examine Finnish nursing students' knowledge base of nursing after 6, 18 and 30 months of education and at the end of the degree programme. The study group consisted of 158 students selected by means of stratified sampling from the six specialities of Finnish nursing education programs. Data were collected by means of a questionnaire from 26 institutes. A factor analysis of 21 items was done, where three factors emerged. The summarized variables based on the factors were subjected to one-way analysis of variance to elucidate the differences between the six groups of students. The students prioritized biomedical knowledge. Knowledge of diseases and anatomy was preferred to the other knowledge areas. The students also valued psychological knowledge. Nursing knowledge was the least preferred knowledge area at every phase of education. The students of the different specialities preferred knowledge areas congruent with the nursing practice of their speciality.