Author: Au, Sin-ting Cindy
Title: Assertiveness and its measurement in Hong Kong nurses
Degree: M.Sc.
Year: 1998
Subject: Nurses -- China -- Hong Kong -- Psychology
Assertiveness (Psychology)
Hong Kong Polytechnic University -- Dissertations
Department: Multi-disciplinary Studies
Department of Nursing and Health Sciences
Pages: 119 leaves : ill. ; 30 cm
Language: English
Abstract: Nursing has not yet been recognised as a profession. One of the reasons is thought to be related to the lack of assertive leaders in the nursing field. Assertiveness, a concept which originated in North America, is considered healthy behaviour for an individual to achieve personal empowerment which in turn will lead to professional empowerment if members of the profession can possess the skills. This dissertation is a cross sectional, exploratory study attempting to find out: a) what are the opinions of a sample of Hong Kong nurses on the concept of assertiveness? b) what are the factors that affect one's level of assertiveness? c) what are the factors that promote or inhibit the exhibition of assertive behaviour? d) to what extent are the measuring tools applicable to the context in Hong Kong? e) how assertive are the sample of Hong Kong nurses? A combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches was used for triangulation. The qualitative approach adopted focus group interviews to explore the perception of the Hong Kong nurses on assertiveness and the possible factors promoting or suppressing their level of assertiveness. The quantitative component employed two measuring instruments, the Rathus Assertiveness Schedule (R.A.S.) for measuring the nurses' assertiveness in daily life and the Nurses' Assertiveness Inventory (N.A.I.) for measuring their assertiveness at work. The result showed that the Hong Kong nurses had inadequate understanding on the concept of assertiveness because they shared a different cultural background. Their levels of assertiveness were affected by their own personality, education, age, and gender. Their decision whether to exhibit assertive behaviours or not was affected by the power of the assertees, their clinical competence and autonomy. The two tools, R.A.S. and N.A.I. were found to be applicable in the context of Hong Kong, and the sample of Hong Kong nurses did not demonstrate an assertiveness level as high as the American nurses.
Rights: All rights reserved
Access: restricted access

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