A comparison of emotional intelligence in traditional BSN and RN to BSN nursing students

Introduction: In today's complex healthcare setting nurses need Emotional Intelligence abilities. Emotional intelligence competencies are not typically included as part of the curricula in most professional nursing programs. Prelicensure BSN students and RN to BSN students have different characteristics and enter nursing school with different levels of clinical experience. The purpose of this study is to understand the differences in measured Emotional Intelligence between traditional BSN students (pre-licensure) and RN to BSN students. Method: The researchers used a quantitative two-group between-subjects design to measure the differences in EI scores of pre-licensure students and RN to BSN students. Results: The findings from this study indicate differences exist in EI abilities between pre-licensure and RN to BSN students. Total EI was significantly higher for pre-licensure BSN students compared to RN to BSN students. Additional branch score findings are found in the full manuscript. Discussion: Based on the findings of this study, the integration of EI content throughout the associate degree, traditional BSN, and RN to BSN program curricula should be a priority. (C) 2021 Organization for Associate Degree Nursing. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.