Recognize Cues is the first of the six cognitive processes in the NCSBN Clinical Judgment Measurement Model: it is noticing which information in the client's presentation is relevant, and which is not, before you interpret it. On the NCLEX this is the step that asks what you found — not what it means.
Items rarely name the step. They describe an action — so match the verb in the stem to the process it belongs to.
| If the item asks you to… | The step is |
|---|---|
| Notice, identify, collect or filter relevant findings | Recognize Cues |
| Decide what those findings mean, or link them to a condition | Step 2 · Analyze Cues |
| Rank which explanation is the most urgent | Step 3 · Prioritize Hypotheses |
| Choose an intervention or an expected outcome | Step 4 · Generate Solutions |
| Carry the intervention out | Step 5 · Take Action |
| Judge whether the intervention worked | Step 6 · Evaluate Outcomes |
RR 28, SpO₂ 89% on room air, accessory muscle use, client denies shortness of breath.
Three observations were collected and one reported symptom contradicts them. Nothing has been interpreted yet — this is pure cue recognition, and the denial is itself a cue.
Potassium 6.1 mmol/L on a client prescribed spironolactone.
The value and the medication history are the cues. Concluding “hyperkalaemia” is the next step; noticing that a potassium of 6.1 sits beside a potassium-sparing diuretic is this one.
Client reports sleeping three hours a night and eating one meal a day for the past month.
Reported habits are data. Recognising that they are relevant to the presenting problem — rather than treating them as small talk — is the cognitive step.
A client is 24 hours post-operatively. The nurse notes a respiratory rate of 28, oxygen saturation of 89% on room air, and use of accessory muscles. The client says, “I'm fine, I just want to sleep.” Which action reflects Recognize Cues?
Recognize Cues. It is the collection and filtering of relevant information from the client's record, assessment and reports, before any interpretation is made.
Recognize Cues — noticing the change is the cue. Deciding what the change means is Analyze Cues, and deciding how urgent it is belongs to Prioritize Hypotheses.
If you can point at the finding and say what you observed without using the word ‘because’, it is a cue. The moment you explain it, you have moved to Analyze Cues.
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