Japanese Nursing Faculty’s Frames of Reference During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Nursing faculty’s frames of reference are likely to have a significant impact on their education methods. Thus, this study aimed to describe Japanese nursing faculty’s perceptions of their own frames of reference during the COVID-19 pandemic based on Mezirow’s transformative learning theory, as well as how these frames of reference and faculty’s teaching-related behaviors were transformed. A qualitative descriptive research design was adopted, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 nursing faculty from February to March 2021. The results indicated that nursing faculty’s frames of reference seem to be influenced by their own childhood learning, learning about teaching methods, and colleagues’ perspectives and practices. No transformative learning experiences were described because the faculty lacked adequate time and space for dialogue. We believe their transformation was still in progress.