The Effects of the Violence Tendency Levels of Nursing Students on Their Attitudes Towards Homosexual Individuals

Abstract

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Nurses' attitudes towards homosexuality are an important factor affecting the quality of care given to homosexual individuals. Therefore, attitudes towards homosexual individuals and the variables affecting these attitudes should be investigated in the undergraduate period of nursing students. This study was conducted to determine the effects of the violence tendency levels of nursing students on their attitudes towards homosexual individuals.MATERIAL AND METHODS: This study used a cross-sectional and descriptive design. It was conducted with 502 nursing students at a state university. The data were collected using a student information form, the Hudson and Ricketts Homophobia Scale (HRHS) and the Violence Tendency Scale (VTS).RESULTS: The mean HRHS score of the students was 94.25 +/- 22.23, and their mean VTS score was 37.82 +/- 8.25. It was found that the students' attitudes towards homosexuals were related to their academic year, number of siblings, the region they lived in, and whether they live with their parents or not. Additionally, it was determined that the students' level of tendency towards violence was low, and low levels of violence tendency were related to higher levels of education of the mother ( p<0.05). There was no significant relationship between the students' violence tendency levels and their homophobia levels (R-2=0.001).CONCLUSION: It was determined that the nursing students' level of tendency towards violence was low, but their attitudes towards homosexuals were negative. Their level of tendency towards violence did not explain their attitude towards homosexuals significantly. These results showed that there are different factors affecting nursing students' homophobic attitudes.