Nursing research centers: a survey of their prevalence, functions and school characteristics

A survey of all 124 NLN accredited schools of nursing with graduate programs in 1984 identified 50 nursing research centers. Their functions focused on research support, unlike most university research centers that focus on performing externally financed research. Secondary analysis of characteristics associated with research support and research productivity was done comparing schools with and without nursing research centers. Schools with research centers were significantly more likely to be large, have a history of an early commitment to research development, grant more graduate degrees, have more doctorally prepared faculty, and be more research productive than schools without. Nursing research centers seem to contribute to research productivity within the profession.