Engaging clinical nurses in research and gaining competencies across the research process can be challenging and time-consuming, particularly for those with little prior research experience. This preliminary study aimed to examine the research confidence of critical care nurses working in the United Kingdom and to explore factors that influence their ability to engage in research activities.
The investigation used a mixed methods design. Participants were critical care nurses employed in the United Kingdom. The study is published in Nurs Crit Care (2026 Sep;31(5):e70651) with authors affiliated to Guy’s and St. Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK (PMID: 42661391; DOI: 10.1111/nicc.70651).
The authors combined quantitative and qualitative approaches. A survey questionnaire was administered to assess nurses’ confidence in research-related skills and activities. Complementing the survey, focus group discussions (FGD) were conducted to elicit deeper perspectives on barriers, enablers and perceived roles that affect nurses’ involvement in research. The PubMed abstract describes the mixed methods approach but does not list sample size, response rates or the specific survey instrument in the abstract.
Survey results, as reported in the abstract, indicated that participating critical care nurses demonstrated moderate levels of confidence in research skills. The article includes a figure depicting mean confidence scores in research-related activities; the abstract on PubMed does not provide the numeric scale, item-level scores or statistical comparisons, so detailed quantitative metrics are not reported in the abstract.
Thematic analyses of the focus group discussions identified central themes that contextualise the survey findings. Themes reported in the abstract emphasise organisational and role-based factors that shape nurses’ research confidence. A figure in the full text summarises FGD themes for a subgroup described as post–Step 3 nurses, as noted in the PubMed entry, but the abstract does not present detailed exemplar quotes or theme subcomponents.
Participants and the authors highlighted the role of the research link nurse as instrumental in increasing nurses’ confidence to engage in research activities. The research link nurse functioned as a bridge between clinical teams and research infrastructure, providing support that participants associated with improved confidence and opportunity to participate in research. Specific activities or competencies of the research link nurse are not detailed in the PubMed abstract.
The qualitative data, as summarised in the abstract, underscored organisational barriers that limit nurses’ participation in research. These barriers were described broadly in the focus group thematic analysis; the PubMed abstract does not enumerate particular barriers (for example, staffing, time, access to training or funding) nor does it quantify their relative importance.
Based on the mixed methods findings, the authors recommend that healthcare organisations take steps to boost critical care nurses’ confidence in research. The abstract states that nurses who feel confident engaging with research are better positioned to realise the benefits of research in clinical practice. The recommendation is organisational in focus, implying interventions such as role support, training or infrastructure, though the abstract does not specify particular interventions or implementation strategies.
The PubMed abstract presents core findings but omits several methodological and quantitative details. The abstract does not report sample size, demographic breakdown, survey items or response rates, and it does not supply numerical results or statistical analyses. Details about the focus group composition, analytic approach beyond ‘thematic analyses’, and any limitations acknowledged by the authors in the full text are not provided in the abstract. Where the abstract is silent, those specifics are not reported in the PubMed summary and would need to be retrieved from the full text (PMCID: PMC13522728) for full appraisal.
This preliminary UK mixed-methods study found that critical care nurses report moderate research confidence, and that organisational factors and the presence of a research link nurse influence their engagement with research. The authors conclude that healthcare organisations should act to improve nurses’ confidence to participate in research so that the benefits of research can be translated into clinical practice. The study declares no conflicts of interest. For full methodological and numeric detail, readers should consult the free full text available via PubMed Central (PMCID: PMC13522728).