Development and validation of the Perinatal Nursing Self-Efficacy Scale

Self-efficacy, a central construct of Bandura's social cognitive theory, provided the framework for developing a measure of perinatal nursing knowledge and skills. The 24-item Perinatal Nursing Self-efficacy Scale (PNSE) encompasses knowledge and skills required of nurses practicing in family-centered single room maternity care (SRMC) settings. Response data from 188 registered nurses were evaluated to assess the reliability and construct validity of the instrument. The instrument demonstrated strong factorial validity and subscales derived from the factor analysis generated high alpha reliabilities. A MANOVA produced results consistent with the propositions of self-efficacy theory and supported construct validity. Since self-efficacy expectations are situation specific and have significant predictive value, they provide both an important adjunct to needs assessment data for educational planning and helpful baseline data for outcome evaluation of perinatal nursing educational programs and transitions to SRMC settings.