간호대학생의 전문직 가치관과 비판적 사고 성향이 간호법 제정에 대한 인식에 미치는 영향

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of nursing students’ nursing professionalism and critical thinking disposition on their perception of the enactment of the Nursing Law. Understanding the factors that influence nursing students’ perception of nursing policy is important because nursing students represent future professional nurses who will play a significant role in the healthcare system and in policy implementation. Therefore, identifying the relationships among nursing professional values, critical thinking disposition, and perception of the Nursing Law may provide important implications for nursing education and professional development. The subjects of this study were 290 nursing students enrolled at a university located in J city. The data were collected from December 29 to 31, 2025 using a self-reported structured questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed using the SPSS 21.0 program. First, the general characteristics of the nursing students were analyzed using frequency analysis. Second, Cronbach’s alpha and confirmatory factor analysis were conducted to examine the reliability and validity of the measurement tools used in the study. Third, in order to verify the discriminant validity among nursing professional values, critical thinking disposition, and perception of the enactment of the Nursing Law, the composite reliability and average variance extracted(AVE) values of the constructs were compared based on the Fornell-Larcker criterion. Fourth, structural equation modeling(SEM) was performed to analyze the relationships among the major variables and to examine the effects of nursing professional values and critical thinking disposition on perception of the enactment of the Nursing Law. The results of this study were as follows. First, nursing professionalism was found to have a significant positive effect on perception of the enactment of the Nursing Law, indicating that nursing students with higher levels of professional values tend to show more positive perceptions regarding the necessity and importance of the Nursing Law. Second, nursing professionalism had a significant positive effect on critical thinking disposition, suggesting that stronger professional values contribute to the development of critical and analytical thinking among nursing students. Third, critical thinking disposition showed a significant positive effect on perception of the enactment of the Nursing Law. This finding indicates that students who possess higher levels of critical thinking are more likely to understand and recognize the significance of nursing-related policies and legislative changes. Furthermore, critical thinking disposition was found to partially mediate the relationship between nursing professional values and perception of the enactment of the Nursing Law, indicating that professional values influence policy perception both directly and indirectly through the enhancement of critical thinking abilities. In conclusion, the findings of this study suggest that strengthening nursing professional values and promoting critical thinking disposition in nursing education are important strategies for improving nursing students’ perception and understanding of nursing policy issues such as the enactment of the Nursing Law. Therefore, it is necessary to develop educational programs and learning environments that foster professional values, encourage critical thinking, and enhance nursing students’ policy awareness and professional identity. These efforts may ultimately contribute to preparing competent nurses who are capable of understanding healthcare policies and actively participating in the development of the nursing profession.