Measuring nurses' self-concept.
Little is known of nurses' self-concept in light of their professional identity or as working adults. This article explores the development and rigorous testing of a new self-concept instrument designed specifically for nurses. The new measure is based on the self-concept measurement theory of Shavelson, Hubner, and Stanton. An expert panel was used to critique and aid refinement of the measure. The dimensions of nurses' self-concept were measured in six scales: General Nursing, Care, Staff Relations, Communication, Knowledge, and Leadership. Two groups participated in this study: Group 1 consisted of nursing students prior to graduation (n = 506) and Group 2 consisted of randomly selected, experienced, working nurses (n = 528). A series of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to test the fit of a priori models. The results indicate that all scales possess good construct validity and a satisfactory fit with the data.
Cowin
L
L
University of Western Sydney, Macarthur.
D000328:Adult; D003142:Communication; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D007587:Job Description; D019359:Knowledge; D007857:Leadership; D008297:Male; D015233:Models, Statistical; D009726:Nurses / Q000523:psychology*; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research / Q000295:instrumentation*; D012649:Self Concept; D013338:Students, Nursing / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards*