Personal and work-milieu resources as variables associated with role mastery in the novice nurse

The purpose of this study was to explore the relative contribution of eight independent variables in explaining novices' perceived variation in role mastery 3 months following their appointment. The study sample included 75 novice graduate nurses in a large tertiary teaching hospital. A correlational design using the multivariate procedure of step-wise multiple regression was used. On day one of orientation, the Schwerian Six-Dimensional Scale of Nursing Performance was administered to the novices, their preceptors, and head nurses. To obtain a measure of the nursing unit's collective expertise, its job satisfaction, and its role socialization, nurse educators rated their units using the Nursing Practice Group Role Mastery Assessment Scale. Participation in bicultural training was documented by attendance. Three months later, the novices were posttested using the Schwerian Scale as the criterion variable. Of the eight potential explanatory variables, only four entered the regression equation, explaining 40% of the variance (p less than .05). These were: entry-level role mastery, the nursing unit's collective expertise, its job satisfaction, and its role socialization. Interestingly, the head nurse's role mastery, and the three interventions used to address role transition problems were not predictors. Also, specific competency weaknesses in novices paralleled their experienced peers in the areas of assessing priorities, written communication, and skills salient to discharge planning.