The optimal environment for socialization of the nurse-scientist.

Tangible elements or factors that contribute to the successful socialization of student scholars seeking the PhD degree in nursing are generally well known. Included among these are the university itself-its faculty, its resources, such as laboratories and libraries, and its research productivity. Less well known are some intangibles in the learning environment that make the difference between an acceptable learning environment and an optimal one, such as, the frequency and quality of informal interaction between faculty and students. The author identifies several characteristics of the pre-doctoral learning environment for nurse PhD students that faculty and administrators should seek to provide if they wish to support truly successful socialization of the scholar/scientist.