Reliability and validity of the Chinese version of Safety Attitudes Questionnaire / 中国实用护理杂志

Objective To translate the English version of Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ) into Chinese,and to test the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of SAQ. Methods The SAQ was developed into Chinese version through translation, back-translation and cross-culture adaption. The reliability and validity of the Chinese version of SAQ were tested in 823 first-line nurse managers in Henan. Results The scale content validity index was 0.90 of the Chinese SAQ, and the item content validity index ranged from 0.83 to 0.96. The correlations between the items and the full scale, the dimensions and the full scale separately ranged from 0.32 to 0.64 and 0.50 to 0.81 (P<0.01). The confirmatory factor analysis resulted in a good model fit for the six dimensions and the full construct, the goodness-of-fit index was 0.96, Tucker-Lewis index was 0.93, comparative fit index was 0.95, and root mean square error of approximation was 0.06. The Cronbach alpha coefficient for the scale was 0.913 and for the six dimensions were 0.565, 0.655, 0.825, 0.804, 0.880, 0.725 separately, the test-retest reliability coefficient was 0.934. Conclusions The Chinese version of SAQ is a valid and reliable tool to assess the safety culture of first-line nurse managers in Chinese hospitals.

Span of Control in Front-Line Nurse Managers / 간호행정학회지

PURPOSE: Span of Control defines the scope of the managers' responsibilities to manage nursing staff. This study was done to measure span of control of front-line nurse managers (FLNMs) in Korea hospitals resulting in improvement in their work efficiency. METHODS: A sample of 203 FLNMs from five tertiary hospitals was recruited and completed the questionnaires. Data were analyzed using χ²-test, Fisher's exact test, independent t-test, ANOVA, Scheffé, and Pearson correlation coefficient. RESULTS: FLNMs had ‘narrow’ (n=8, 4.3%), ‘appropriate’ (n=161, 87.0%), and ‘wide’ (n=16, 8.6%) span of control. Span of control had significant correlations with the number of nurses (r=.63, p<.001), the number of non-nurses (r=.53, p<.001), units (r=.52, p<.001), staff (r=.83, p<.001), and programs (r=.67, p<.001). CONCLUSION: The research findings indicate that attention should be given to unit complexity, program diversity, total staff, and skills. Moreover, administrators of hospital and nursing departments need to provide systematic support in accordance with FLNMs’ wide span of control.

Resilience and Work-life Balance in First-line Nurse Manager

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to explore how first-line nurse managers constructed the meaning of resilience and its relationship to work-life balance for nurses in Korea. METHODS: Participants were 20 first-line nurse managers working in six university hospitals. Data were collected through in-depth interviews from December 2011 to August 2012, and analyzed using Strauss and Corbin's grounded theory method. RESULTS: Analysis revealed that participants perceived work-life balance and resilience to be shaped by dynamic, reflective processes. The features consisting resilience included "positive thinking", "flexibility", "assuming responsibility", and "separating work and life". This perception of resilience has the potential to facilitate a shift in focus from negative to positive experiences, from rigidity to flexibility, from taskcentered to person-centered thinking, and from the organization to life. CONCLUSIONS: Recognizing the importance of work-life balance in producing and sustaining resilience in first-line nurse managers could increase retention in the Korean nursing workforce.

A Validation Study of the Modified Korean Version of Ethical Leadership at Work Questionnaire (K-ELW)

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to validate the Korean version of the Ethical Leadership at Work questionnaire (K-ELW) that measures RNs' perceived ethical leadership of their nurse managers. METHODS: The strong validation process suggested by Benson (1998), including translation and cultural adaptation stage, structural stage, and external stage, was used. Participants were 241 RNs who reported their perceived ethical leadership using both the pre-version of K-ELW and a previously known Ethical Leadership Scale, and interactional justice of their managers, as well as their own demographics, organizational commitment and organizational citizenship behavior. Data analyses included descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation coefficients, reliability coefficients, exploratory factor analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis. SPSS 19.0 and Amos 18.0 versions were used. RESULTS: A modified K-ELW was developed from construct validity evidence and included 31 items in 7 domains: People orientation, task responsibility fairness, relationship fairness, power sharing, concern for sustainability, ethical guidance, and integrity. Convergent validity, discriminant validity, and concurrent validity were supported according to the correlation coefficients of the 7 domains with other measures. CONCLUSION: The results of this study provide preliminary evidence that the modified K-ELW can be adopted in Korean nursing organizations, and reliable and valid ethical leadership scores can be expected.

Nurse Managers' Moral Self Concept and Ethical Sensitivity / 간호학회지

PURPOSE: This descriptive study was designed to find out the relationship between moral self concept and ethical sensitivity of nurse managers. METHODS: Study data were collected from Aug 6, 2001 to Aug 24, 2001. Study subjects were 283 nurse managers working in university hospitals. Moral self concept was measured with questionnaire developed by Chung (1965) and ethical sensitivity was measured with the questionnaire developed by the researchers. RESULTS: 1. The score for degree of nurse managers' moral self concept was shown to be an average of 3.06 out of 4.00, which is relatively high. The score for degree of nurse managers' ethical sensitivity was shown to be an average of 2.84 out of 4.00 2. Analysis of correlation between moral self concept and ethical sensitivity showed a statistically significant positive correlation (r= .34, p=.00). 3. In general characteristics, a variable that caused significant difference in moral self concept was the total period of experience as a nurse (F=3.52, p=.02). A variable that caused significant difference in ethical sensitivity was the current working department (F=3.91, p=.01). 4. Nurse administrator's moral self concept was significantly related to ethical sensitivity (r= .34, p= .00). CONCLUSION: It is important to intensify individual moral self concept in order to improve ethical sensitivity of nurse managers. Also, it is recommended that investigate variables affected moral self concept and develop a nursing education program to promote moral self concept in nurse administrators.