The Relationship between Critical Thinking Disposition and Self Esteem in Third and Forth Year Bachelor Nursing Students

Introduction: Having critical thinking skills requires an attentive personality with decision making power which is an attribute of self esteem. This study was performed to determine the relationship between critical thinking disposition and self esteem in third and fourth year bachelor nursing students. Methods: This correlational study was conducted on 170 third and fourth year bachelor nursing students in Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences and Yazd Islamic Azad University in 2008. The students were selected through stratified sampling method. The data gathering tool was a questionnaire containing 3 parts: demographic data questionnaire, California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory, and, Rosenberg self esteem scale. Data analysis was done by SPSS software using frequency distribution, and Fisher exact test. Results: Based on the results 81.8% of students had an ambivalent critical thinking disposition. There was a significant correlation between critical thinking disposition and self esteem. Conclusion: Critical thinkers need to possess high level of self esteem. Therefore, faculty members should impart the sense of self esteem in their students for proper clinical judgment and decision making in different clinical circumstances.