Mobile Game Simulation for Nursing Students' Decision-Making

August 19, 2026 updated by: Delta University for Science and Technology

An Interactive Mobile Game-Based Simulation Educational Program for Enhancing Decision-Making and Problem-Solving Among Nursing Students: A Quasi-Experimental Study

This study will test whether an interactive mobile game-based simulation program helps first-year nursing students improve their decision-making and problem-solving skills. Students will complete knowledge, decision-making, and problem-solving assessments before and after taking part in a 4-week program (8 sessions) that uses mobile game scenarios to practice clinical decisions in a safe, simulated setting. The results will show whether this type of training is more effective than traditional teaching methods for building these skills.

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

This is a quasi-experimental, single-group, pretest-posttest study conducted at the Faculty of Nursing, Delta University for Science and Technology. The study tests three hypotheses: that participation in the program will significantly increase students' knowledge scores, clinical decision-making scores, and problem-solving scores from pre-test to post-test. The educational intervention progresses through four phases: assessment, planning, implementation, and evaluation. Outcomes will be measured using a researcher-developed knowledge questionnaire, the Clinical Decision-Making in Nursing Scale (CDMNS), and the Problem-Solving Inventory (PSI), administered at baseline, immediately after program completion, and again two months later.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

258

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

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

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child
  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • First-year nursing students at the Faculty of Nursing, Delta University for Science and Technology.
  • Students who voluntarily consent to participate in the study.
  • Students who are willing and able to use the mobile application.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Students who have previously participated in a similar mobile game-based or simulation-based educational program.
  • Students with any condition that prevents them from using a smartphone/mobile application.
  • Students who fail to complete the pre-test, the educational program, or the post-test.
  • Students who withdraw consent during 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: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Nursing Students Receiving Mobile Game-Based Simulation Program
First-year nursing students who receive the interactive mobile game-based simulation educational program over 4 weeks (8 sessions), twice per week, with each session lasting 2 hours. Assessments will be conducted at baseline, immediately after completion of the program, and 2 months after program completion.
Behavioral: Interactive Mobile Game-Based Simulation Educational Program
An interactive mobile game-based simulation educational program designed to enhance nursing students' clinical decision-making, knowledge about mobile game-based simulation, and problem-solving skills. The program will be implemented over 4 weeks through 8 sessions, twice per week, with each session lasting 2 hours. The program includes educational content, clinical scenarios, scenario-based decision-making, problem-solving activities, small group discussions, scenario debriefing, and hands-on use of the mobile application.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Clinical Decision-Making Score
Time Frame: Baseline (before the educational program), immediately after completion of the program, and 2 months after program completion.
Clinical decision-making will be assessed using the Clinical Decision-Making in Nursing Scale (CDMNS). The scale consists of 40 items classified into four subscales: search for alternatives or options, canvassing of objectives and values, evaluation and re-evaluation of consequences, and search for information and unbiased assimilation of new information. Items are rated on a five-point Likert scale, with total scores ranging from 40 to 200. Higher scores indicate more positive clinical decision-making.
Baseline (before the educational program), immediately after completion of the program, and 2 months after program completion.
Change in Problem-Solving Score
Time Frame: Baseline (before the educational program), immediately after completion of the program, and 2 months after program completion.
Problem-solving will be assessed using the Problem-Solving Inventory (PSI). The inventory consists of 32 items classified into three subscales: problem-solving confidence, approach-avoidance style, and personal control. Items are rated on a six-point Likert scale, with reverse scoring for negative items. Total scores range from 32 to 192, with lower scores indicating more positive problem-solving perception.
Baseline (before the educational program), immediately after completion of the program, and 2 months after program completion.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Knowledge Score about Mobile Game-Based Simulation
Time Frame: Measured at baseline (before program), immediately after program completion (week 4), and 2 months after program completion
Measured using a researcher-developed questionnaire assessing students' knowledge of mobile game-based simulation, including its definition, development, advantages/disadvantages, technical requirements, and impact on nursing education. Scored 0 for incorrect and 1 for correct answers; classified as satisfactory (≥60%) or unsatisfactory (<60%).
Measured at baseline (before program), immediately after program completion (week 4), and 2 months after program completion

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Delta University for Science and Technology

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Mona Ahmed Gabr, PHD, Delta University for Science and Technology

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

  • Hwang, G. J., & Chang, C. Y. (2023). Facilitating decision-making performances in nursing treatments: A contextual digital game-based flipped learning approach. Interactive Learning Environments, 31(1), 156-171.

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)

September 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

October 1, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

August 15, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 15, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

August 19, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

August 20, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 19, 2026

Last Verified

August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

  • DFM-IRB 00012367-26-07-022

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Individual participant data will not be shared with other researchers.

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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