Influences of critical thinking disposition, nurse managers’ transformation and transactional leadership style on nurses’ competency with evidence based practice

Purpose: This study was conducted to identify the influences of critical thinking disposition and perceived nurse managers' leadership style on nurses' competency with evidence based practice in hospitals. Methods: The participants were 147 nurses working in two university hospitals in Seoul, Korea. Data were collected during February and March in 2017 and were analyzed with Multiple Regression Analysis using SPSS/WIN 18.0. Results: The most influential factor on nurses' competency of evidence based practice was critical thinking disposition (β=.55, p<.001), followed by transformation (β=.20, p=.011) which together explained their competency of evidence based practice up to 53.0%. Conclusion: It is necessary to develop intervention programs and curriculum to enhance competence for nurses. It is also necessary to draw plans to develop nursing managers’ transformational leadership. Therefore not only clinical nurses but also throughout the organization, strategies and curriculums should be developed to help nurses perform evidence based practice.