Understanding the Roles, Responsibilities, and Competencies of Advanced Practice Registered Nurses: Instrument Development and Psychometric Testing

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Demand for primary care providers increases value for advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) to assume more independent roles. The purpose was to develop a reliable, valid instrument to measure roles, responsibilities, and competencies reflective of autonomous practice for APRNs. METHODS: Conceptual literature motivated development of a new instrument. Validity was initially evaluated through expert content review. Reliability of proposed scales was evaluated and possible underlying constructs were identified through factor analysis using data from a pilot study. RESULTS: Content validity for the instrument was high (content validity index [CVI] 88). The 16-item instrument is highly reliable (Cronbach's alpha of 0.81). Cronbach's alphas for subscales ranged from 0.60 to 0.75. Factor analysis identified four components. CONCLUSIONS: The Petersen Sieloff Assessment of Advanced Practice (PSAAP) demonstrated initial reliability. Additional examination is warranted to further improve the factor structure.