Practice environment scale of the nursing work index: Portuguese version and psychometric properties

To assess the psychometric properties regarding the Portuguese version of the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index.

The Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index is the most widely used measure for assessing the practice environment. A model with a higher number of factors appears to be more adequate to Portuguese settings.

A confirmatory factor analysis was performed to the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index using a sample of 850 Portuguese nurses. Three models were tested: the original model, a seven-factor model and a higher-order model. An analysis of invariance was performed in two subsets to confirm the stability of the solution.

The seven-factor model fit better to the data than the original model. After refinement, this solution showed suitability and a stable factor structure. Reliability, convergent validity and discriminant validity were confirmed. A second-order factor solution also showed suitability.

The seven-factor structure of the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index showed a better goodness-of-fit to Portuguese settings than the original structure. The second-order factor solution allows an overall assessment of practice environments.

The Portuguese version of the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index is a valuable tool for assessing Portuguese nursing practice environments. The seven-factor solution of the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index showed high specificity.