Examination Date

8-2022

Degree

Dissertation

Degree Program

Nursing (PhD)

Examination Committee

Marsha J. Bennett, Marie Adorno, Linda Ledet, Darlene Weis, Lee McDaniel

Abstract

Objectives: Evaluation of professionalism in nursing has proven challenging as no objective

measurement tool exists. The purpose of this study was to develop and test the Professionalism

in Nursing Scale (PNS) for reliability and validity, which will facilitate evaluation of the

constructs of professionalism in nursing. Participants: Participants were senior nursing students

and registered nurses with at least a baccalaureate degree and minimum of three years of

experience working either in academia at an accredited university or in a practice setting in a

Magnet™ hospital. Study Method: Methodological research was used to design an instrument

that measures professionalism in nursing. Phase one included item development, scaling, and

evaluation of the content validity index, using ten content experts. Phase two included pilot and

field testing using participants meeting the inclusion criteria. Questionnaires were sent

electronically to evaluate the relevance of each attribute of professionalism using a Likert scale.

Phase three was scale evaluation, including reliability and validity of the PNS. Findings: The

proposed factor structure was seven, with final results of exploratory factor analysis supporting a

33-item five-factor model. The factors were named Ethics and Interprofessional Collaboration,

Excellence, Professional Engagement, Caring, and Self-awareness, respectively. The overall

reliability of the PNS was .97. Findings demonstrated the reliability and validity of the PNS for

measuring professionalism in academic and clinician nurses and nursing students. Conclusions:

Measuring professionalism in nursing can assist driving improvement of patient care,

accountability, and team collaboration. A discussion of the PNS within the context of academia

and clinical practice, along with implications for research, practice, education, and policy will be

presented.

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