Mobile Application Developed Based on the Thompson &Thompson Bioethical Decision-Making

May 18, 2026 updated by: Asude GÜNEY, Necmettin Erbakan University

The Effect of a Mobile Application Developed Based on the Thompson &Thompson Bioethical Decision-Making Model on Nursing Students' Ethical Decision-Making and Ethical Sensitivity: A Randomized Controlled Study

Aim: The aim of this study is to examine the effect of a mobile application, developed based on the Thompson & Thompson bioethical decision-making model, on the ethical decision-making and ethical sensitivity of nursing students. Method: This randomized controlled trial, planned with pre-, post-, and followup tests, will be conducted at Necmettin Erbakan University Faculty of Nursing during the 2026-2027 academic year. The study population will consist of 4th-year students enrolled in the Necmettin Erbakan University Faculty of Nursing during the 2026-2027 academic year. The sample size was statistically calculated using the G Power 3.1.9.7 software package. The total sample size was calculated as 82. To prevent data loss, the sample size was increased by 10%, resulting in a sample size of 90 students. Students in the intervention group will use the mobile application. Students in the control group will conduct face-toface case analysis. The research data will be collected using the "Introductory Information Form", "Ethical Dilemma Test in Nursing" and "Adapted Ethical Sensitivity Scale for Nursing Students". The data will be analyzed using the IBM SPSS 22 software package. Conclusion: As a result of the research, it is predicted that the mobile application developed based on the Thompson & Thompson bioethical decision-making model will have a positive effect on the ethical decision-making and sensitivity levels of nursing students.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
90

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Being a 4th-year nursing student.
  • Having taken and successfully passed the Professional Ethics course.
  • Having a mobile device and internet access.
  • Willing to volunteer to participate in the research.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Difficulty understanding and speaking Turkish
  • Having a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) below 2.00

Exclusion criteria from the study:

  • Experiencing problems with internet access
  • Completing data collection forms incompletely/incorrectly
  • Not attending any of the case study or case analysis sessions
  • Wishing to withdraw from the study

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Other
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Experimental
Mobile Application Developed Based on the Thompson & Thompson Bioethical Decision-Making Model
Other: Mobile Application Developed Based on the Thompson & Thompson Bioethical Decision-Making Model
The application content is a mobile application created by researchers and developed by a computer engineer. The application will be compatible with both iOS and Android software. Once the application is ready, it will be made available for download to the phones of the students in the intervention group. The mobile application will have student and faculty login options. Students will be able to register and log in to the application with their student numbers and a password they have chosen. The application interface will include case studies, ethical statements, an ethics information library, and online support areas. Six ethical case scenarios created by the researcher will be acted out with a patient and a nurse, and videos will be recorded. Each of the recorded videos will be uploaded to the mobile application.
Other: Control
Ethical case discussions
Other: Ethical case discussions
For case discussions with students in the control group, ethical cases from the book Ethical Decision Making in Nursing will be used.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Ethical decision-making
Time Frame: 3 months
Ethical decision-making will be assessed using the Nursing Ethical Dilemma Test. The lowest possible Principled Thinking score is 18, and the highest is 66; the lowest Practical Thinking score is 6, and the highest is 36. The sum of the scores for each dilemma constitutes an A score. Accordingly, scores between 6 and 17 indicate that students are familiar with a similar dilemma, while scores between 18 and 30 indicate that they are not familiar with a similar dilemma.
3 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Ethical sensitivity
Time Frame: 3 months
Ethical sensitivity will be assessed using the Ethical Sensitivity Scale Adapted for Nursing Students. The total score of the scale ranges from 30 to 210. Higher scores indicate higher ethical sensitivity.
3 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Necmettin Erbakan University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
January 11, 2027

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
March 5, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
June 11, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
May 12, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 18, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
May 22, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
May 22, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 18, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • NecmettinErbakanUU

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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