Assessing An Instrument in a Pilot Project: The Self-care Agency Questionnaire

Abstract

The use of sound measurement instruments and practices in nursing research is fundamental to the advancement of nursing knowledge. By using clearly developed and effective approaches to measure variables, internal validity is improved and error in investigations is reduced (Strickland & Waltz, 1986). Without this precaution, any research study is uninterpretable, and the results are questionable (Campbell & Stanley, 1963). Increasing interest in developing tools to measure phenomena from a nursing perspective has produced an increasing number of published instruments. However, despite this effort, many tools have not been tested in a variety of settings or with different populations, and they have not been used extensively in subsequent investigations. Strickland and Waltz (1986) argue that it is inefficient for researchers to construct their own measures. They believe that progress in measurement would be facilitated if efforts were directed toward developing and testing existing instruments. Increased rigor in measurement resulting from these efforts would allow increased confidence in the findings and interpretations drawn from nursing studies.