How spiritual intelligence relates to well-being in nursing education: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

This study examined the relationships among spiritual intelligence, happiness, and academic achievement in nursing students and explored the independent associations among these variables. The research was conducted with 278 nursing students at X University between September and November 2024. Data were collected online using a Descriptive Information Form, the Spiritual Intelligence Scale, and the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire–Short Form. Ethical approval was obtained from the relevant institutional ethics committee, and written informed consent was obtained electronically from all participants. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, ANOVA, Pearson correlation, and multiple linear regression. The mean happiness score was 19.76 ± 3.52 and the mean spiritual intelligence score was 59.59 ± 6.18. A weak but significant positive correlation was found between spiritual intelligence and happiness ( r = 0.176, p = 0.003). Adjusted multiple linear regression analyses showed that happiness and spiritual intelligence remained independently associated with each other after adjustment for demographic and educational characteristics, whereas academic achievement was not independently associated with either outcome.