Cross‐sectional online survey of research productivity in young J apanese nursing faculty

Aim To investigate the factors affecting the research productivity of young nursing faculty in J apan. Methods An online survey targeting young nursing scholars (aged ≤39 years) who were members of the J apan A cademy of N ursing S cience was conducted from O ctober to N ovember 2012. Of 1634 potential respondents, 648 completed the survey (39.7%), and 400 full‐time faculty of a baccalaureate degree program were selected for the analysis. The numbers of E nglish‐language and J apanese publications in the past 3 years were regressed onto personal characteristics, such as academic degree and type of university. Results The mean numbers of publications in E nglish and J apanese in the past 3 years were 0.41 and 1.63, respectively. Holding a doctoral degree was significantly related to a higher number of publications in E nglish and J apanese ( e β  = 5.78 and e β  = 1.89, respectively). Working at a national university ( e β  = 2.15), having a research assistant ( e β  = 2.05), and the ability to read research articles in E nglish ( e β  = 2.27) were significantly related to more E nglish‐language publications. Having the confidence to conduct quantitative research ( e β  = 1.67) was related to a larger number of J apanese publications. The lack of mentoring ( e β  = 0.97) and university workload ( e β  = 0.96) were associated with a lesser number of J apanese publications. Conclusion The research productivity of young nursing faculty appeared to be quite low. Strategies to enhance research productivity in young nursing faculty, such as encouraging the achievement of a doctoral degree or enrichment of research resources, should be undertaken.