An Exploratory Qualitative Study of Postgraduate Nursing Students’ Experiences of Using GenAI in Learning Nursing Leadership

Abstract

Background/Objectives: Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) presents immense potential to advance the flipped learning approach. Yet, it is under-explored. This study presents the postgraduate nursing students’ experience in using GenAI when learning nursing leadership, guided by Bloom’s taxonomy, in a flipped-learning approach. Methods: A descriptive qualitative design was employed, and individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine postgraduate nursing students who had completed a nursing leadership course delivered via a GenAI-integrated flipped-learning approach. Results: Three interconnected themes emerged: (1) GenAI supplements in-person learning, (2) Direct and Socratic questioning, and (3) Factors contributing to the GenAI learning experience. Students appreciated that GenAI helped them summarize and understand the learning material, thereby promoting meaningful in-class activities. Students highlighted direct and Socratic questioning as the major approaches in using GenAI and reported their perceived strengths and weaknesses. Notably, Socratic questioning—AI-driven thought-provoking dialog—was perceived to have helped develop critical thinking and promote deep learning. However, suboptimal prompting technique was the barrier, while channels for learning prompting and integrating it into the curriculum were facilitators. Conclusions: This study reveals an overall positive experience with the use of GenAI in flipped learning in postgraduate nursing education.