Mental Health SimulationNCT07627646
A Robotic Mental Health Simulation Intervention to Enhance Professional Identity, Interpersonal Communication Competence, and Emotional Intelligence Among Saudi Nursing Students: A Quasi-Experimental Study
A study testing Mental Health Robotic Simulation Training in people with Mental Health Simulation and Professional Identity, run by Alexandria University at 1 site in Saudi Arabia.
Trial summary
A quasi-experimental pre-test, post-test, and three-month follow-up design will be used. Nursing students assigned to the intervention group will participate in structured robotic mental health simulation sessions involving interactions with a robot programmed to portray patients experiencing common psychiatric… Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 17 to 27 years
- Conditions the study is for
- Mental Health Simulation, Professional Identity, Interpersonal Communication Competence
- What is being tested?
- Mental Health Robotic Simulation Training
- Type of treatment
- Medical device
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 80 participants
- Where
- 1 siteSaudi Arabia
- Study dates
- 15 Jul 2025to 15 Jun 2026
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 17 to 27 years
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Child, Adult
Who may be able to join
- Undergraduate nursing students enrolled in the Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing course (NURS 224) during the study period Students registered in the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program at the College of Nursing, University of Hafr Al Batin Willingness to participate in the study and provide informed consent Attendance in both theoretical and practical components of the course during the intervention period Availability to participate in simulation sessions and complete all study assessments at baseline, post-test, and follow-up
Who cannot join
- Students who refuse or withdraw consent at any stage of the study Students who fail to complete all required data collection points (pre-test, post-test, and follow-up) Students absent from the robotic simulation sessions or traditional teaching sessions during the intervention period Students with prior formal training or extensive experience in psychiatric simulation-based education (if applicable to avoid bias)
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
Saudi Arabia1 site, 1 recruiting
- Recruiting
Dammam, Saudi Arabia
Dammam
Dammam, Saudi Arabia Jalal Alharbi, 966555157637, Jalaln@uhb.edu.sa
About this study
A quasi-experimental pre-test, post-test, and three-month follow-up design will be used. Nursing students assigned to the intervention group will participate in structured robotic mental health simulation sessions involving interactions with a robot programmed to portray patients experiencing common psychiatric conditions, while the control group will receive traditional teaching methods. Outcomes will be assessed using validated measures of professional identity, interpersonal communication competence, and emotional intelligence before the intervention, immediately after completion, and three months later to determine both immediate and sustained educational effects
Read the detailed description
The increasing complexity of healthcare environments requires nursing graduates to possess not only clinical knowledge and technical competence but also strong professional identity, effective interpersonal communication skills, and emotional intelligence. These competencies are particularly important in psychiatric and mental health nursing, where therapeutic relationships, emotional awareness, and effective communication are essential for providing safe, compassionate, and patient-centered care. However, nursing students may encounter limited opportunities to consistently practice these competencies during clinical placements because of variability in patient exposure, supervision, and learning experiences.
Simulation-based education has become an important strategy for bridging the gap between theoretical knowledge and clinical practice by providing realistic, safe, and structured learning experiences. Recent advances in educational technology have introduced robotic simulation as an innovative teaching approach capable of creating standardized and repeatable clinical scenarios. Mental illness simulation robots can portray patients experiencing psychiatric symptoms and emotional distress, allowing students to practice therapeutic communication, psychiatric assessment, emotional support, crisis intervention, and other mental health nursing skills in a controlled environment.
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a mental illness simulation robot on nursing students' professional identity, interpersonal communication competence, and emotional intelligence. The study employs a quasi-experimental pre-test, post-test, and three-month follow-up design involving undergraduate nursing students enrolled in a psychiatric-mental health nursing course. Participants are allocated to either an intervention group receiving robotic mental health simulation integrated into laboratory and clinical learning activities or a control group receiving traditional teaching methods without robotic simulation.
The robotic simulation intervention includes structured psychiatric nursing scenarios involving common mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, psychosis, emotional distress, and aggressive behavior. Each simulation session consists of pre-briefing, active interaction with the robotic patient, and faculty-guided debriefing focused on reflection, communication performance, emotional responses, and clinical reasoning. The intervention is designed to provide experiential learning opportunities that support professional role development, communication skill acquisition, and emotional competency enhancement.
Study outcomes include professional identity, interpersonal communication competence, and emotional intelligence measured using validated self-report instruments administered at baseline, immediately following the intervention, and three months after completion of the intervention. The findings are expected to contribute evidence regarding the educational value of robotic mental health simulation and its potential role in strengthening psychological, interpersonal, and professional competencies among future nurses.
- Being tested
- Mental Health Robotic Simulation Training
- Keywords
- Mental Health Simulation Intervention; Professional Identity; Interpersonal Communication Competence; Emotional Intelligence
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Mental Health Robotic Simulation TrainingDevice
Mental Health Robotic Simulation Training is an educational intervention that utilizes a humanoid or socially assistive robot programmed to simulate patients experiencing psychiatric and emotional conditions, including anxiety, depression, psychosis, aggressive behavior, and emotional distress. The intervention is integrated into the Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing course and provides structured simulation experiences focused on therapeutic communication, mental health assessment, nurse-patient relationship development, crisis intervention, suicide risk assessment, emotional support, and de-escalation strategies. Each simulation session includes pre-briefing, active interaction with the robotic patient, and faculty-guided debriefing. The intervention aims to enhance nursing students' professional identity, interpersonal communication competence, and emotional intelligence through experiential and reflective learning.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Mental Health Robotic Simulation Training | Experimental | Participants in this group will receive robotic mental health simulation training integrated into the Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing course. Students will engage in structured simulation sessions using a robot programmed to portray patients experiencing common psychiatric conditions and emotional distress. Simulation activities include therapeutic communication, psychiatric assessment, crisis intervention, emotional support, de-escalation strategies, and nurse-patient relationship development. Each session includes pre-briefing, simulation, and faculty-guided debriefing. Receives: Device: Mental Health Robotic Simulation Training |
| Traditional Teaching | No intervention | Participants in this group will receive the standard educational approach used in the Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing course, including lectures, instructor demonstrations, case-based discussions, laboratory teaching activities, self-directed learning, and routine clinical training. No robotic simulation or simulation-based psychiatric training will be provided. |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Professional Identity
Professional identity will be assessed using the Professional Identity Scale for Nursing Students (PISNS), a 17-item instrument measuring professional self-image, social modeling, career choice independence, social comparison and self-reflection, and retention-related perceptions. Higher scores indicate a stronger professional identity.
Measured: Baseline (pre-intervention) and immediately post-intervention
Emotional Intelligence
Emotional intelligence will be measured using the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Scale (SSREIS), a 33-item self-report instrument assessing participants' ability to perceive, understand, regulate, and utilize emotions. Higher scores indicate greater emotional intelligence.
Measured: Baseline (pre-intervention) and immediately after completion of the intervention (post-intervention).
Secondary outcomes (1)
Interpersonal Communication Competence
Interpersonal communication competence was assessed using the brief version "10-item" Interpersonal Communication Competence Scale (ICCS), originally developed by(Rubin \& Martin, 1994). The scale evaluates individuals' perceived competence in interpersonal communication across several domains, including self-disclosure, empathy, social relaxation, assertiveness, interaction management, expressiveness, supportiveness, and communication effectiveness.
Measured: Baseline (pre-intervention) and immediately post-intervention
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted4 Jun 2026
- Study start15 Jul 2025
- Primary completion15 Jun 2026 (estimated)
- Study completion15 Jun 2026 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Mental Health SimulationStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by Alexandria UniversityThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Supportive care
- Allocation
- Non-randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind
- Who is masked
- Participant
- Enrolment
- 80 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Alexandria University
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Mahmoud Khedr, Alexandria University
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07627646
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- HPO-05-FT-25/29
- Status last verified
- May 2026
- First submitted
- 31 May 2026
- Last updated
- 4 Jun 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- Yes
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 4 Jun 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- A Robotic Mental Health Simulation Intervention to Enhance Professional Identity, Interpersonal Communication Competence, and Emotional Intelligence Among Saudi Nursing Students: A Quasi-Experimental Study
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07627646
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- HPO-05-FT-25/29
- Keywords
- Mental Health Simulation Intervention; Professional Identity; Interpersonal Communication Competence; Emotional Intelligence
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Enrolment
- 80 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- Alexandria UniversityUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 15 Jul 2025 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 15 Jun 2026 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 15 Jun 2026 (estimated)
- First posted
- 4 Jun 2026 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
A quasi-experimental pre-test, post-test, and three-month follow-up design will be used. Nursing students assigned to the intervention group will participate in structured robotic mental health simulation sessions involving interactions with a robot programmed to portray patients experiencing common psychiatric conditions, while the control group will receive traditional teaching methods. Outcomes will be assessed using validated measures of professional identity, interpersonal communication competence, and emotional intelligence before the intervention, immediately after completion, and three months later to determine both immediate and sustained educational effects
Detailed description
The increasing complexity of healthcare environments requires nursing graduates to possess not only clinical knowledge and technical competence but also strong professional identity, effective interpersonal communication skills, and emotional intelligence. These competencies are particularly important in psychiatric and mental health nursing, where therapeutic relationships, emotional awareness, and effective communication are essential for providing safe, compassionate, and patient-centered care. However, nursing students may encounter limited opportunities to consistently practice these competencies during clinical placements because of variability in patient exposure, supervision, and learning experiences.
Simulation-based education has become an important strategy for bridging the gap between theoretical knowledge and clinical practice by providing realistic, safe, and structured learning experiences. Recent advances in educational technology have introduced robotic simulation as an innovative teaching approach capable of creating standardized and repeatable clinical scenarios. Mental illness simulation robots can portray patients experiencing psychiatric symptoms and emotional distress, allowing students to practice therapeutic communication, psychiatric assessment, emotional support, crisis intervention, and other mental health nursing skills in a controlled environment.
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a mental illness simulation robot on nursing students' professional identity, interpersonal communication competence, and emotional intelligence. The study employs a quasi-experimental pre-test, post-test, and three-month follow-up design involving undergraduate nursing students enrolled in a psychiatric-mental health nursing course. Participants are allocated to either an intervention group receiving robotic mental health simulation integrated into laboratory and clinical learning activities or a control group receiving traditional teaching methods without robotic simulation.
The robotic simulation intervention includes structured psychiatric nursing scenarios involving common mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, psychosis, emotional distress, and aggressive behavior. Each simulation session consists of pre-briefing, active interaction with the robotic patient, and faculty-guided debriefing focused on reflection, communication performance, emotional responses, and clinical reasoning. The intervention is designed to provide experiential learning opportunities that support professional role development, communication skill acquisition, and emotional competency enhancement.
Study outcomes include professional identity, interpersonal communication competence, and emotional intelligence measured using validated self-report instruments administered at baseline, immediately following the intervention, and three months after completion of the intervention. The findings are expected to contribute evidence regarding the educational value of robotic mental health simulation and its potential role in strengthening psychological, interpersonal, and professional competencies among future nurses.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Supportive care
- Allocation
- Non-randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind (participant)
- Number of arms
- 2
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Mental Health Robotic Simulation Training | Experimental | Device: Mental Health Robotic Simulation TrainingParticipants in this group will receive robotic mental health simulation training integrated into the Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing course. Students will engage in structured simulation sessions using a robot programmed to portray patients experiencing common psychiatric conditions and emotional distress. Simulation activities include therapeutic communication, psychiatric assessment, crisis intervention, emotional support, de-escalation strategies, and nurse-patient relationship development. Each session includes pre-briefing, simulation, and faculty-guided debriefing. |
| Traditional Teaching | No intervention | –Participants in this group will receive the standard educational approach used in the Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing course, including lectures, instructor demonstrations, case-based discussions, laboratory teaching activities, self-directed learning, and routine clinical training. No robotic simulation or simulation-based psychiatric training will be provided. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 17 to 27 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Not accepted
- Age groups
- Child, Adult
Key inclusion criteria (1 listed)
- Undergraduate nursing students enrolled in the Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing course (NURS 224) during the study period Students registered in the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program at the College of Nursing, University of Hafr Al Batin Willingness to participate in the study and provide informed consent Attendance in both theoretical and practical components of the course during the intervention period Availability to participate in simulation sessions and complete all study assessments at baseline, post-test, and follow-up
Key exclusion criteria (1 listed)
- Students who refuse or withdraw consent at any stage of the study Students who fail to complete all required data collection points (pre-test, post-test, and follow-up) Students absent from the robotic simulation sessions or traditional teaching sessions during the intervention period Students with prior formal training or extensive experience in psychiatric simulation-based education (if applicable to avoid bias)
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Mental Health Robotic Simulation TrainingMental Health Robotic Simulation Training is an educational intervention that utilizes a humanoid or socially assistive robot programmed to simulate patients experiencing psychiatric and emotional conditions, including anxiety, depression, psychosis, aggressive behavior, and emotional distress. The intervention is integrated into the Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing course and provides structured simulation experiences focused on therapeutic communication, mental health assessment, nurse-patient relationship development, crisis intervention, suicide risk assessment, emotional support, and de-escalation strategies. Each simulation session includes pre-briefing, active interaction with the robotic patient, and faculty-guided debriefing. The intervention aims to enhance nursing students' professional identity, interpersonal communication competence, and emotional intelligence through experiential and reflective learning. | Device | Mental Health Robotic Simulation Training |
Primary outcome
Professional Identity
Time frame: Baseline (pre-intervention) and immediately post-intervention
Professional identity will be assessed using the Professional Identity Scale for Nursing Students (PISNS), a 17-item instrument measuring professional self-image, social modeling, career choice independence, social comparison and self-reflection, and retention-related perceptions. Higher scores indicate a stronger professional identity.
Emotional Intelligence
Time frame: Baseline (pre-intervention) and immediately after completion of the intervention (post-intervention).
Emotional intelligence will be measured using the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Scale (SSREIS), a 33-item self-report instrument assessing participants' ability to perceive, understand, regulate, and utilize emotions. Higher scores indicate greater emotional intelligence.
1 secondary outcome
Interpersonal Communication Competence
Time frame: Baseline (pre-intervention) and immediately post-intervention
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 4 Jun 2026.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Mental Health Robotic Simulation Training in people with Mental Health Simulation and Professional Identity, run by Alexandria University at 1 site in Saudi Arabia.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 1 inclusion and 1 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: looking for participants now, as of the sponsor's last update on 4 Jun 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in Saudi Arabia. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Galal Harby, Associate Professor (+966 59 981 9696, Jalaln@uhb.edu.sa), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Professional Identity (time frame: Baseline (pre-intervention) and immediately post-intervention). The study lists 2 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 4 Jun 2026.