title: Using a virtual community to enhance cultural awareness.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Cultural competence is an expectation of professional practice, yet effectively teaching this concept to nursing students is challenging. The purpose of this study was to assess the use of a virtual community as a teaching application to foster cultural awareness among nursing students.
  
  
  METHODS
  This correlational study involved the collection of two surveys from 342 first-semester students from five baccalaureate nursing programs that used The Neighborhood virtual community during one semester. Descriptive and comparative analyses were performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Results suggest that use of the virtual community may have contributed to cultural awareness among student participants. There was a significant correlation between frequency of use and cultural awareness. Virtual communities may represent a useful teaching application for cultural competence in nursing education. Further research is needed to specifically test cultural competence education strategies using a virtual community platform.
authors.affiliation: University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA. jgiddens@salud.unm.edu
authors.forename: Jean Foret
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Giddens
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: North
authors.forename: Linnea
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Carlson-Sabelli
authors.forename: Erin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rogers
authors.forename: Louis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Fogg
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001364:Awareness; D054521:Cultural Competency; D004508:Education, Nursing, Baccalaureate / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012579:Schools, Nursing; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D013338:Students, Nursing / Q000523:psychology*; D014584:User-Computer Interface; D055815:Young Adult