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Adaptation of the Practice Environment Scale for military nurses: a psychometric analysis
Author(s) -
Swiger Pauline A.,
Raju Dheeraj,
BreckenridgeSproat Sara,
Patrician Patricia A.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
journal of advanced nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.948
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 1365-2648
pISSN - 0309-2402
DOI - 10.1111/jan.13276
Subject(s) - confirmatory factor analysis , exploratory factor analysis , scale (ratio) , applied psychology , descriptive statistics , psychology , item analysis , population , reliability (semiconductor) , psychometrics , adaptation (eye) , nursing , medicine , clinical psychology , structural equation modeling , computer science , statistics , environmental health , power (physics) , physics , mathematics , quantum mechanics , machine learning , neuroscience
Aim The aim of this study was to confirm the psychometric properties of Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index in a military population. This study also demonstrates association rule analysis, a contemporary exploratory technique. Background One of the instruments most commonly used to evaluate the nursing practice environment is the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index. Although the instrument has been widely used, the reliability, validity and individual item function are not commonly evaluated. Gaps exist with regard to confirmatory evaluation of the subscale factors, individual item analysis and evaluation in the outpatient setting and with non‐registered nursing staff. Design This was a secondary data analysis of existing survey data. Methods Multiple psychometric methods were used for this analysis using survey data collected in 2014. First, descriptive analyses were conducted, including exploration using association rules. Next, internal consistency was tested and confirmatory factor analysis was performed to test the factor structure. The specified factor structure did not hold; therefore, exploratory factor analysis was performed. Finally, item analysis was executed using item response theory. The differential item functioning technique allowed the comparison of responses by care setting and nurse type. Results The results of this study indicate that responses differ between groups and that several individual items could be removed without altering the psychometric properties of the instrument. Conclusion The instrument functions moderately well in a military population; however, researchers may want to consider nurse type and care setting during analysis to identify any meaningful variation in responses.