A Healthy Person: The Perceptions of Indonesian and Scandinavian Nursing Students

Abstract

The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate how nursing students in Indonesia and Scandinavia characterize a healthy person. Two hundred thirty-two nursing students from Indonesia, 50 students from Sweden, and 119 students from Norway participated by answering an open-ended question. Qualitative content analysis was used to identify patterns of health in a cultural and national context. The characteristics of a healthy person were summarized in the theme “external and inner balance,” which are intertwined because of the wholeness of self-image and appearance. The subcategories were having a strong and positive body image, feeling well and having inner harmony, following the rules of life, coping with challenges, and acting in unison with the environment. There were more similarities than differences between the Indonesian and Scandinavian nursing students’ understanding of being a healthy person. The difference is that the Scandinavian students mentioned individuality, whereas the Indonesian students referred to collective values.