Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index: A Reliability Generalization Meta-Analysis

Area of Science:

• Nursing
• Healthcare Management
• Psychometrics

Background:

• A positive nursing work environment is essential for nurse retention, job satisfaction, and optimal patient outcomes.
• The Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index (PES-NWI) is a widely adopted tool for evaluating the nursing practice environment.
• Assessing the reliability generalization of the PES-NWI is crucial for validating its use across different settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a meta-analysis examining the reliability generalization of the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index (PES-NWI).
• To evaluate the consistency of PES-NWI scores across various studies and geographical locations.

Main Methods:

• A meta-analysis was performed on 51 studies, encompassing a total of 80,563 subjects.
• Reliability generalization was assessed using the mean score reliability calculation.
• Study quality and geographical location (United States vs. non-U.S.) were considered as potential moderators.

Main Results:

• The overall mean score reliability for the PES-NWI across 38 studies (n = 68,278) was .922 (p < .05).
• Mean weighted effect sizes were slightly stronger in studies from the United States (.946) compared to non-U.S. studies (.907).
• Studies rated as high and moderate quality showed mean score reliabilities of .911 and .946, respectively.

Conclusions:

• The Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index (PES-NWI) demonstrates strong and reliable measurement properties for the nursing practice environment.
• The PES-NWI is a reliable instrument for use in both U.S. and international healthcare settings.
• Findings support the continued use of the PES-NWI for evaluating nursing practice environments to improve healthcare quality.