Epigenesis of the nurse practitioner role revisited.

In the mid-1970s, an article discussed the identity crises of nurse practitioner (NP) students which occurred during their educational experience. This article noted that NP students progress from dependence to interdependence and demonstrate regression, anxiety and conflict. Twenty years later we have also observed these changes in our own graduate students. This article describes our observations, analyzes them with respect to well-known developmental theory, and offers suggestions for teaching methodologies which enhance successful transitions through the crises.