Development of a Scale That Measures Job Satisfaction in Public Health Nurses Employed in the Public Sector / 日本農村医学会雑誌

ABSTRACT

The objective of this study was to develop a scale that measures job satisfaction in public health nurses (PHNs) employed in the public sector and to test its reliability and validity. Results of semi-structured interviews with PHNs employed in the public sector and findings in literature review were assessed for content validity. A preliminary scale consisting of 74 items was thus developed, and its reliability and validity were tested in 1,030 PHNs employed in the public sector. Valid responses obtained from 422 PHNs (valid response rate, 41.0%) were subjected to item analysis followed by exploratory factor analysis using the principal factor method with promax rotation. Accordingly, 3 factors and 18 items were extracted, and the hypostatic factors were named “duties and responsibilities of PHNs”, “senior staff's understanding and environment facilitating personal development”, and “thoughts and trust in residents”. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the goodness of fit of the hypothetical model. Cronbach’s t was 0.907 (0.847-0.900 for subscales), confirming the reliability of the scale. The intraclass correlation coefficient (r) by the test-retest reliability method was .847 (.727-.830 for subscales), confirming stability. The criterion-related validity was confirmed by positive correlations of the draft scale with a general job satisfaction scale (r = .642, p.001), a self-esteem scale (r = .452, p.001), a self-efficacy scale (r =.411, p.001), an interpersonal support ability scale (r = .452, p.001), and a scale for ability to support and manage the community (r =.532, p.001). In sum, we developed a scale consisting of 3 factors and 18 items that measures job satisfaction in PHNs employed in the public sector. The contents of this scale will contribute to aspects of job satisfaction in diverse human resource development of the future. Thus, this scale is expected to be useful as a human resource development tool for PHNs employed in the public sector.