Client Age, Gender, Behaviour: Effects on Quality of Predicted Self-Reactions and Colleague Reactions

Abstract

This comparative study shows biases relative to client age, gender and behaviour demonstrated by 268 female nurse subjects. A repeated measures design was utilized. All three main effects were significant (p less than 0.001) for how respondents predicted that they would react to various clients and also how they predicted that their colleagues would react. Most two-way and three-way interaction effects were significant. Subjects demonstrated more favourable reactions to nice, young, male clients and least favourable reactions to not nice, old male clients. Study subjects predicted more favourable self-reactions to simulated clients than for their colleagues. What should be important to every professional as a result of this study is the need to be aware of self-biases, which may cause errors in decision-making and nursing care interventions and lead to ethical violations with clients.