The Determinants of Nursing Technological Readiness: A Systematic Review

Abstract

This systematic review synthesises evidence on the determinants of nursing technological readiness across educational and clinical settings. Technological readiness was operationalised as the combined capability, willingness, and contextual enablement of nursing students and practising nurses to understand, evaluate, accept, and use digital health technologies, nursing informatics systems, and artificial intelligence safely in education or care. A PRISMA-informed search and citation-verification process applied to the 2015-2025 eligibility window identified 59 eligible primary empirical studies, published between 2018 and 2025. Evidence was appraised using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool and design-specific Joanna Briggs Institute criteria, extracted into a structured ledger, and coded across fifteen recurrent determinants. Knowledge/Literacy, Attitudes, Education/Training, Prior Exposure, and Digital Skills received the greatest research attention, whereas Innovation Orientation, Social Influence, and Ease of Use were examined less frequently. Across the evidence base, higher Knowledge/Literacy, Digital Skills, Self-Efficacy, Perceived Usefulness, constructive Attitudes, and relevant Prior Exposure were generally associated with greater Technological Readiness. Anxiety/Resistance and unresolved Ethics/Privacy concerns constrained readiness, whereas Organisational Support and Infrastructure/Resources shaped whether individual capability translated into routine adoption. The synthesis integrates the Technology Acceptance Model, the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology, the Technology Readiness Index, and the Nonadoption, Abandonment, Scale-up, Spread, and Sustainability framework. It distinguishes student readiness from workforce readiness, separates frequency of examination from consistency of reported influence, and identifies priorities for longitudinal, multilevel, intervention, and measurement research.