From the Perspectives of Students at a University: Ethics Education's Contribution to Ethical Development

This study aimed to evaluate the contribution of ethics education to ethical development from the student's perspective. A mixed-method quasi-experimental study was conducted using a singlegroup pre-test/post-test design without a control group. The study was conducted with third-year nursing students enrolled at a university in Türkiye (n=118). Data were collected using the ''Students' Perceived Effectiveness of Ethics Education Scale'' and focus group interview questions. During the first ten weeks of the nursing ethics course, theoretical lectures were delivered, followed by four weeks of ethical case discussions utilizing various teaching methods. The scale was administered to students twice: after the theoretical lectures (week 10) and at the end of the ethical case discussions employing interactive methods (week 14). Focus group interviews (n=21) were conducted two weeks after the course's completion. Following the interactive case discussions, both subscale and overall scores significantly increased. Three contexts emerged in the focus group interviews: ''personal moral/ethical awareness'', ''professional ethical awareness'', and ''evaluation of the nursing ethics course'', with five themes and thirteen subthemes. Students expressed positive perceptions of the ethical case discussions supported by interactive teaching methods and provided several constructive suggestions. Ethical case discussions and other interactive methods appeared to play a role in fostering students' ethical behaviors. Future research with larger sample sizes and comparisons of different teaching methodologies is recommended.