Abstract
BACKGROUND: Developing research competence and self-efficacy is a core goal of graduate nursing education. However, traditional lecture-based instruction often fails to cultivate students’ ability to critically appraise, synthesize, and apply research evidence. This study aimed to design and evaluate a graduate-level literature seminar course based on the flipped classroom (FC) and team-based learning (TBL) pedagogies to enhance the research competence and research self-efficacy of nursing postgraduates. METHODS: A quasi-experimental single-group pretest-posttest design was conducted among 124 master’s nursing students at Shanxi Medical University. The course integrated pre-class preparation, in-class collaboration, and post-class reflection across ten thematic units of nursing research. The Nursing Research Competence Self-Evaluation Scale and the Nursing Research Self-Efficacy Scale were administered before and after the intervention. Data were analyzed using paired-sample t-tests with SPSS 26.0. RESULTS: Both research competence and self-efficacy showed significant improvement after the course (p < 0.001). The most important gains were observed in thesis writing, problem identification, and data processing abilities. Students also demonstrated higher confidence in theoretical research, resource acquisition, and collective research efficacy. CONCLUSION: The FC-TBL-based literature seminar course effectively enhanced graduate nursing students’ methodological literacy, critical inquiry, and confidence in conducting scholarly research. This learner-centered model provides an innovative and evidence-informed framework for improving research education in postgraduate nursing curricula. CLINICAL TRIAL NUMBER: Not applicable.