Nurse Competence Scale--psychometric testing in a Norwegian context

Area of Science:

• Nursing
• Healthcare Management
• Psychometrics

Background:

• The Nurse Competence Scale (NCS) is widely used internationally in hospital settings.
• Confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) for the NCS are infrequently reported, questioning its construct validity.
• Translation processes can impact the psychometric properties of assessment instruments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To test the construct validity of the Nurse Competence Scale (NCS) in a Norwegian context.
• To re-evaluate the factor structure of the NCS using both confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses.
• To establish a psychometrically sound instrument for assessing nurse competence in Norway.

Main Methods:

• Re-analysis of existing psychometric testing data from 2007.
• Inclusion of data from 593 newly graduated nurses across diverse healthcare settings.
• Application of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA), specifically Principal Component Analysis (PCA).

Main Results:

• The original 7-factor, 73-item model of the Nurse Competence Scale was not confirmed by CFA.
• Exploratory factor analyses yielded a revised 46-item Norwegian Nurse Competence Scale.
• The revised scale comprises five distinct competence categories: Planning and delivery of care, Teaching functions, Professional leadership, Research utilization and nursing values, and Professional awareness.

Conclusions:

• The study highlights the critical need for psychometric validation of instruments post-translation.
• The revised 46-item Norwegian Nurse Competence Scale demonstrates suitability for describing and comparing nurse competence.
• The validated instrument can inform the development of targeted competence enhancement programs for individual nurses and healthcare organizations.