The development and validation of a nurse preceptor core competency scale: A culturally compatible methodological study.

BACKGROUND

Existing competency frameworks for nurse preceptors lack standardization, especially between Western and non-Western countries. A new scale is needed to address these cultural and contextual differences.

AIM

To develop and validate a culturally compatible scale to measure core competencies for nurse preceptors in Taiwan.

DESIGN

A methodological study.

SETTING

Two medical centers and one regional hospital under the umbrella of a private, non-profit healthcare organization.

METHOD

The study followed the DeVellis method comprising two phases: developing a core competencies scale; and validating the scale's reliability. An initial item pool of 51 was created and refined through expert panel discussions, item and scale content validity index, exploratory factor analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis.

RESULTS

Two hundreds and sixteen valid questionnaires from nurse preceptors were used. The scale content validity index was 0.96. Composite reliability ranged from 0.88 to 0.95, all exceeding 0.7, confirming convergent validity. The average variance extracted ranged from 0.52 to 0.76, all above 0.5, and the largest correlation coefficient square (0.49) was greater than the smallest average variance extracted (0.52), which meets discriminant validity criteria. The final instrument consisted of 30 items across five subscales: Communication and Collaboration; Consultation of Academic Writing; Teaching Traits; Clinical Nursing Profession; and Teaching Pedagogy. The Cronbach's α coefficients for each factor were between 0.88 and 0.95 and was 0.97 for the entire instrument.

CONCLUSION

The Nurse Preceptor Core Competency Scale is a valid and reliable tool to assess core competencies of nurse preceptors in Taiwan, ensuring that they are prepared to effectively support new nurses in providing safe and high-quality patient care.