Relationship between super-leadership and self-directed learning ability in online nursing education: The mediating effects of self-leadership and self-efficacy perceptions

BACKGROUND: Self-directed learning ability is a core competence that enables students to enhance their academic achievement, clinical competence, and professional growth in nursing education. Super-leadership—as a strategy to develop the learning process—promotes students’ self-leadership, which, in turn, enhances perceived self-efficacy perception and ultimately facilitates self-directed learning ability. Few studies have rigorously determined the influences of super-leadership, self-leadership, and academic self-efficacy perceptions on self-directed learning ability in online nursing education during the COVID-19 pandemic. OBJECTIVES: To determine the mediating effects of self-leadership and self-efficacy perceptions in the relationship between perceived super-leadership and self-directed learning ability. DESIGN: This study was conducted using a quantitative mediation analysis design. PARTICIPANTS: One hundred and fifty nursing students were conveniently recruited from two nursing colleges offering the same four-year nursing degree program. METHODS: Participants completed a super-leadership scale, a self-leadership scale, an academic self-efficacy scale, and a self-directed learning ability inventory. Data were analyzed with Pearson's correlations, regression analysis, Sobel's test, and Hayes's Process Macro using the bootstrap method. RESULTS: Self-directed learning ability was correlated with perceived super-leadership (r = .47, p < .001), self-leadership (r = 0.69, p < .001), and academic self-efficacy (r = 0.29, p < .001). Super-leadership influenced self-leadership (β = 0.42, p < .001), academic self-efficacy (β = 0.22, p = .002), and self-directed learning ability (β = 0.36, p < .001). Self-leadership and academic self-efficacy mediated the relationship between super-leadership and self-directed learning ability (β = .42, p < .001; β = 0.35, p < .001) (z = 1.936, p = .026 by Sobel test). CONCLUSION: Learning strategies to enhance self-directed learning ability are required for successful super-leadership to boost self-leadership and academic self-efficacy perceptions among nursing students in the online, asynchronous COVID-19 educational environment. Therefore, this study's empirical evidence on integrating super-leadership with self-leadership and academic self-efficacy has practical and future research implications in terms of attaining core academic goals for nursing students.