Doctoral Thesis
A Narrative Inquiry of Developing Nurse Identity: The Experiences of Students in a Vocational Education and Training Delivered to Secondary Students (VETDSS) Nursing Course
Murdoch University
Professional Doctorate, Murdoch University
2025
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.60867/00000044
Abstract
The aims of this study are twofold: first, to describe the experiences of students enrolled in a Vocational Education and Training Delivered to Secondary Students (VETDSS) nursing course, and second, to better understand how these experiences contributed to their nurse identity formation. Seven students who had recently completed a VETDSS course at a regional technical and further education (TAFE) college in Western Australia (WA) were invited to share their experiences. The research used face-to-face interviews and self-selected images (or pictures) to represent participants’ experiences and evolving nurse identities. Based on these interview data, narratives were constructed to identify, describe, and explain the conditions that impacted participants’ desire to become nurses. Esteban-Guitart and Moll’s (2014) five dimensions of funds of identity—(a) geographical, (b) practical, (c) cultural, (d) social, and (e) institutional—were used as a theoretical lens to explore participants’ narratives and identify the ways in which they understood, defined, and expressed their emerging nurse identity. Findings revealed the students felt that moving into the VETDSS nursing course provided them with a sense of belonging and reinforced their desire to become nurses. Friends (social funds of identity) and family (institutional funds of identity) emerged as key factors in helping students successfully complete the VETDSS course and in augmenting their developing nurse identities. Family, friends, and communities taught them about developing caring relationships and influenced their initial desire to become nurses; however, it was friends who made them feel like they were meant to be in the VETDSS course, supporting them to obtain places in the course, navigate educational systems, access resources, and act as mentors. Findings from this study have the potential to inform schools, TAFEs, and universities about how best to support students moving from school into VETDSS nursing courses by providing guidance on how to access and use institutional systems and processes, establishing buddy systems and mentoring programs for students, and building teaching staff and student relationships.
Keywords: identity, nurse, vocational education, engagement, aspiration, experience, narrative
Details
- Title
- A Narrative Inquiry of Developing Nurse Identity: The Experiences of Students in a Vocational Education and Training Delivered to Secondary Students (VETDSS) Nursing Course
- Authors/Creators
- Kerrie F Goodsell
- Contributors
- Peter Wright PhD (Supervisor) - Murdoch University, School of EducationRebecca Saunders (Supervisor)Barry Down (Supervisor) - Murdoch University, School of Education
- Awarding Institution
- Murdoch University; Professional Doctorate
- Publisher
- Murdoch University
- Identifiers
- 991005845963007891
- Murdoch Affiliation
- School of Education
- Resource Type
- Doctoral Thesis
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