COMPARING TRAINING EFFECTS OF FIELD INDEPENDENCE-DEPENDENCE TO ADAPTIVE FLEXIBILITY ON NURSE PROBLEM-SOLVING.
Contributors: University of San Francisco.
Published: 1988
Number of pages: 145
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.; Education, Curriculum and Instruction.
Description: Statement of the problem. Within the context of two theoretical constructs, Witkin's cognitive style of field independence-dependence and Guilford's factor of adaptive flexibility, this study investigated the effects of two training interventions on nurse problem solving. Seven hypotheses were tested to determine what type of causal relationship existed between perceptual ability and adaptive flexibility and to determine the effects of treatment and perceptual ability on test-score performance on a written nurse problem-solving test.

Methodology. A 2 x 2 randomized block design was used to investigate the effects of two independent variables, training and perception, on three dependent variables measured by the Group Embedded Figures Test (GEFT), the Insight Problems Test (IPT), and the Nurse Problem Solving Test (NPST). The sample of thirty-six undergraduate senior nursing students was pretested on the GEFT and IPT. The sample was then stratified by GEFT scores, and subjects were randomly assigned to one of two training treatment groups. The perceptual-treatment group received training to promote field independence and the adaptive-flexibility treatment group received training to promote adaptive flexibility. After two 30-minute training periods at one-week intervals, all subjects were post-tested on the GEFT and the IPT and tested on the NPST.

Results. The statistical analysis of the data showed the following: (1) A significant correlation (0.53) existed between the GEFT and IPT pretest scores. (2) Perceptual and adaptive-flexibility training did not result in the field-dependent (FD) subjects equalling the performance of the field-independent (FI) subjects on the GEFT and IPT post-tests. However, the direction of gain in mean scores from pretest to post-test for the field-dependent subjects strongly suggested that training did cause increased perception and adaptive-flexibility skills. (3) Training in perception resulted in similar IPT scores for both FI and FD subjects. While training in adaptive flexibility did not result in equal GEFT scores between the FI and FD subjects, the FD subjects did double their GEFT mean post-test score. (4) Training in adaptive flexibility caused a greater pretest to post-test mean score difference on the GEFT. (5) No significant difference existed between the two treatment groups on the NPST. However, the FI subjects did achieve a higher mean score than the FD subjects, particularly in the adaptive-flexibility training group. (Abstract shortened with permission of author.).
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 50-01, Section: B, page: 0128.

Thesis (ED.D.)--UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCO, 1988.

School code: 6019.