Development and Validation of a Nursing Students' Clinical Practice Stress Scale: A Mixed Methods Study

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Psychometrics
• Healthcare Workforce Development

Background:

• Nursing students face significant stressors in clinical settings.
• These stressors can negatively affect student well-being, academic performance, and patient care quality.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate the Nursing Students' Clinical Practice Stress Scale (NSCPSS).
• To measure clinical practice stressors experienced by nursing students in Sri Lanka.

Main Methods:

• An exploratory sequential mixed methods design was employed.
• Item development involved qualitative data from focus groups and literature review.
• Psychometric evaluation included validity and reliability testing on 183 undergraduate nursing students.

Main Results:

• Exploratory factor analysis identified four key stressor factors: knowledge/skills gaps, lack of support, academic/clinical demand management, and clinical environment challenges.
• These factors explained 57.0% of the variance.
• Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed acceptable model fit and reliability (Cronbach's alpha and composite reliability > 0.6).

Conclusions:

• The Nursing Students' Clinical Practice Stress Scale (NSCPSS) is a valid and reliable tool.
• The NSCPSS aids in identifying and addressing clinical stressors for nursing students.
• This contributes to enhanced learning, improved student well-being, and a more resilient nursing workforce.