Analysis of Nursing Students’ Perceptions Through Metaphors for Nurse and Patient Concepts

Abstract

Objective: Metaphors are mental tools used to understand and explain abstract and complex events. Metaphor is a way of interpreting, likening, and expressing one thing in terms of another. The aim of this study is to determine the perceptions of nursing students regarding the concepts of “nurse” and “patient” through metaphors. Methods: This qualitative study included 238 students studying at the Nursing Faculty of a uni-versity. Content analysis method was used to analyze the qualitative data obtained. Data analysis was completed with coding and debugging, category creation, validity and reliability, frequency and percentage calculation, and interpretation stages. Results: Students produced 100 valid metaphors about the concept of nurse and 78 valid metaphors for patient. The highest frequency among nurse metaphors were mother (24.7%) and angel (8.8%), and the highest frequency among patient metaphors were infants or children (40.0%) and flower (6.6 %). Conclusion: It was found that the nurse was mostly compared to the mother and the patient to the child/baby, the nurse’s role as a caregiver was emphasized, but she was not perceived as a professional in this role, and the patient was seen as someone in need of care, love, and compassion.