CONSTRUCT VALIDITY ANALYSIS OF THE GENETICS AND GENOMICS IN NURSING PRACTICE SURVEY: OVERCOMING CHALLENGES IN VARIABLE RESPONSE INSTRUMENTS

Background and Purpose: We evaluated the construct validity of the Genetics and Genomics Nursing Practice Survey by investigating the factoral structure, while attempting to account for varied response structures of the items. Methods: Exploratory factor analyses provided insights into item loadings. Confirmatory factor analyses and a version of common methods bias analyses evaluated construct validity while considering the instrument's structural limitations. Structural equation models provided information regarding model fit. Results: The 7-factor model fit these data slightly better (AIC ≈ 169,405; RMSEA = .052) than did the 5-factor model (AIC ≈ 183,599; RMSEA = .063). Neither the CFI or TLI met commonly-accepted thresholds for adequate model fits. Conclusion: The response format of the GGNPS created challenges in evaluating the instrument for construct validity. Nonetheless, these results support the theory-based construct validity of the GGNPS.