A nutrition attitude instrument for nursing students

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Educational Measurement
• Nutrition Education

Background:

• Developing valid and reliable instruments for measuring attitudes is essential in nursing education.
• Existing attitude measurement tools may not be adequately suited for specific student populations or research contexts.
• Attitude measurement in nutrition education research requires careful consideration of instrument psychometrics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a new attitude instrument specifically for nursing students.
• To assess the reliability of the newly developed attitude scale.
• To contextualize the findings within the broader field of attitude measurement in nutrition education.

Main Methods:

• Instrument development focusing on a single scale design.
• Reliability testing using Coefficient Alpha and split-half methods.
• Consideration of sample characteristics' impact on reliability estimates.

Main Results:

• The developed attitude scale demonstrated strong internal consistency with a Coefficient Alpha of r = 0.87.
• The split-half reliability estimate for the scale was found to be r = 0.84.
• The study highlighted the importance of sample size and selection in achieving reliable measurement outcomes.

Conclusions:

• The generated attitude instrument is a reliable tool for assessing nursing students' attitudes.
• Reliability estimates are influenced by statistical correlations, emphasizing the need for careful sample consideration.
• The findings contribute to the ongoing discussion on effective attitude measurement in nutrition education research.