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The article discusses a trend in nursing research where there is an increase in multivariate path analysis studies focusing on mediating factors. The authors, as editors of nursing journals, express concern that many of these studies lack a clear theoretical basis and may be more focused on statistical analysis than meaningful research questions. They suggest that editors be vigilant in evaluating the quality and relevance of such studies to maintain academic publishing standards. [Extracted from the article]

Aim: To discuss the possible contribution of nurses to the Silver Economy. Background: Older people constitute a growing sector of the population of developed countries and there is increasing interest in the concept of the Silver Economy which is the contribution older people can and do make to the general economies of their communities and countries. Sources of evidence: We obtained a range of relevant documents from international organisations and related academic literature. Discussion: There is a range of interrelated health promotion aspects of ageing related to physical health, mental health and cognitive health. Promoting activities related to these could have both direct and indirect impact on the economy in addition to improving the health and well‐being of older people. Conclusions: Nurses have a responsibility to understand the health promotion related aspects of ageing and the contribution they can make to improving the health and well‐being of older people. Nurses could, specifically, promote activities amongst older people that will have an impact on health and on the economy. Implications for nursing: Nurses need to integrate more health promotion related aspects of ageing into their practice and to be able to evaluate the health‐related improvements they make and also to evaluate and indicate the contribution this makes to the health of older people and to the economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the trend of submitting manuscripts based on bibliometric analysis to nursing journals. Bibliometrics is the study of academic publication in terms of the number of articles published, where they are published, and by whom. While bibliometric analysis can provide valuable information for the academic publishing industry, the article questions whether it contributes to knowledge in a particular field of study. The authors note that many bibliometric studies lack theoretical guidance and are purely descriptive, offering little insight beyond the presented data. However, they suggest that bibliometric analysis could be useful if the right research questions are posed, such as examining the contribution of nursing literature to the general medical or scientific literature. The authors caution against conducting bibliometric studies solely for the purpose of securing a publication. [Extracted from the article]

Background: Delay in seeking care increases the morbidity and mortality in tuberculosis (TB) patients and leads to increased likelihood of transmission within the community. Stigmatisation is one of the influencing factors causing delay in accessing healthcare when experiencing symptoms of TB. Objective: This study aimed to explore the relationship between TB stigmatisation and patient delay among pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) patients. Methods: A mixed methods study was undertaken among 300 randomly sampled participants who completed questionnaire surveys, supplemented by 25 in-depth interviews with purposively-sampled participants identified as delaying access to healthcare. Results: Participants reporting higher perceived levels of TB stigmatisation demonstrated a longer duration of patient delay (p < 0.001). Qualitative data reinforced the view that perceptions of TB as being a disease carrying with it a stigma contributed to a delay in seeking healthcare. This was also exacerbated in patients with HIV-positive. Given that HIV-positive status is still subject to stigma in some parts of society, patients demonstrated additional reluctance to seek out healthcare if they were known to be HIV-positive whilst also experiencing symptoms of TB. Discussion: The study highlights that accurate and objective information about TB is required to reduce societal stigmatisation related to the disease, thereby reducing the reluctance of patients to access healthcare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aimed to access the reliability and validity of the Stressors in Nursing Students Scale in the Turkish language (SINS‐T). Design and Methods: Data were collected after the linguistic and content validity of the instrument. The study included 436 nursing students. Findings: The exploratory factor analysis was acceptable, and four factors were determined. These factors were named confidence, education, relationships, and uncertainties. Practice Implications: The SINS‐T is a valid and reliable tool to determine the stress experienced by nursing students. Conducting different studies with a large sample size using this instrument will help expose nursing students' stress and its' outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) is a major health problem in Thailand. Delay in getting treatment is an important factor which may worsen the disease and increase TB transmission. Objective: This study aimed to investigate the duration and predictors of patient delay among PTB patients in Northeast Thailand. Methods: A cross-sectional study was undertaken using a structured questionnaire in nine districts in Nakhon Ratchasima Province from July to September 2018. The duration between the first symptom onset and the first visit to a health facility was determined, with a period of greater than 30 days defined as patient delay. Multiple logistic regression was used to identify predictors of the delay. Results: 300 PTB patients participated in the survey, with patient delay identified in 39% of respondents. The median duration of the delay was 35 days among participants overall. Through multivariate analysis, primary education, upper secondary education, previous TB knowledge, TB recognition, TB stigmatisation, weight loss, self-treatment, the number of visits with health providers and using a motorcycle to travel to the hospital were significant predictors of patient delay. Discussion: Knowledge needs to be provided to people to increase their recognition and minimise stigmatisation of TB. Education about TB screening needs to be revised and delivered to health providers to increase and improve TB detection processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An editorial on how evidence-based medicine be another casualty of COVID-19, and medical care abandoned in governments' rush to act in the context of public and media alarm. Topics include effectiveness of lockdown measures and the necessity for universal and draconian protection measures; and COVID-19 has caused scientists, advisers and policymakers to reflect on existing evidence on the effectiveness of face masks.

A paper was published in 2003 discussing the ethics of nurses participating in executions by inserting the intravenous line for lethal injections and providing care until death. This paper was circulated on an international email list of senior nurses and academics to engender discussion. From that discussion, several people agreed to contribute to a paper expressing their own thoughts and feelings about the ethics of nurses participating in executions in countries where capital punishment is legal. While a range of opinions were presented, these opinions fell into two main themes. The first of these included reflections on the philosophical obligations of nurses as caregivers who support those in times of great need, including condemned prisoners at the end of life. The second theme encompassed the notion that no nurse ever should participate in the active taking of life, in line with the codes of ethics of various nursing organisations. This range of opinions suggests the complexity of this issue and the need for further public discussion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim and objective: To explore nurses’ perspectives of language barriers and their impact on the provision of care to patients with limited English proficiency from diverse linguistic background. Design and methods: A qualitative descriptive approach was used. Using individual interviews and focus group discussions, data were collected from 59 nurses working in tertiary care hospitals in England. A thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. Findings: Three themes, “multi‐ethnicities and language barriers,” “the impact of language barriers” and “communicating via interpreters,” were identified. Communication was identified as the most important aspect of care provision and an essential component of a nurse's professional role regardless of the clinical area or speciality. Language barriers were identified as the biggest obstacles in providing adequate, appropriate, effective and timely care to patients with limited English proficiency. Use of professional interpreters was considered useful; however, the limitations associated with use of interpretation service, including arrangement difficulties, availability and accessibility of interpreters, convenience, confidentiality and privacy‐related issues and impact on the patient's comfort were mentioned. Conclusions: Language barriers, in any country or setting, can negatively affect nurses’ ability to communicate effectively with their patients and thereby have a negative impact on the provision of appropriate, timely, safe and effective care to meet patient's needs. Relevance to clinical practice: An understanding of language barriers can help nurses find appropriate strategies to overcome such barriers and, consequently, enhance the provision of effective care to patients affected by language barriers in any clinical setting in any healthcare system. The findings of the study have international relevance as language barriers affect healthcare provision in any country or setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims/Background: The Edinburgh Feeding Evaluation in Dementia (EdFED) scale has been shown to have good psychometric properties using a range of methods including Mokken scaling. We aimed to study the Italian version of the EdFED using Mokken scaling. Methods: Data were gathered at 7 time points from 401 nursing home residents affected by dementia in the course of a 6-month intervention study using analysis of variance, Mokken scaling, and person-item fit statistics. Results: The properties of the EdFED-I scale were stable over the course of the study with 4 items showing invariant item ordering at all time points. Some items behaved differently at different levels of difficulty in the scale and also depending on the mean level of feeding difficulty. The test information function showed a dip in the mid-range of difficulty scores. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Activities of daily living serve as an indicator of progression in disability and rehabilitation. It is know that some of the measurement scales used show hierarchical properties indicating that activities of daily living are lost and gained in a consistent pattern. Few studies have investigated the extent to which these patterns are sustained across time and across a range of disability. The study aimed to investigate the hierarchical properties of the activity of daily living items in the ValGraf functional ability scale, to establish if there is a hierarchy of items in the scale and to study the sustainability of the hierarchy over time. Secondary analysis of a retrospective database from 13,113 people over 65 years in 105 nursing homes in northern Italy, between 2008 and 2013 was conducted. Data were gathered 6-monthly and analysed using Mokken scaling to identify a hierarchy of items in the scale and if this was sustainable over time. A sustainable hierarchy of items was observed running in difficulty from urinary incontinence to feeding. The hierarchical structure of the activities of daily living observed in the present study is stable over time meaning that changes in total score for these items can be compared meaningfully across time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors emphasise the importance of citations and provide some advice on how nurse academics can increase citations to their work. Topics discussed include the impact of the number of citations a paper receives on the field to which it relates, the contribution of citations per staff member to nursing's world rankings, and the rate of discovery and turnover of research in bench science and some topical and novel areas of medicine.

Aims A discussion of bibliometrics, altmetrics and social media for the contemporary nursing scholar and academic researcher. Background Today's nursing academic faces myriad challenges in balancing their daily life and, in recent years, academic survival has been increasingly challenged by the various research assessment exercises that evaluate the performance of knowledge institutions. As such, it is essential that today's nursing academic keep up to date with the core competencies needed for survival in a modern research career, particularly the intersecting triad of bibliometrics, altmetrics and social media. Design Discussion paper. Data sources Published literature and relevant websites. Implications for nursing The rise of social media and altmetrics has important implications for contemporary nursing scholars who publish their research. Some fundamental questions when choosing a journal might be 'does it have a Twitter and/or Facebook site, or a blog (or all three)'; and 'does it have any other presence on social media, such as LinkedIn, Wikipedia, YouTube, ResearchGate and so on?' Another consequence of embracing social media is that individual academics should also develop their own strategies for promoting and disseminating their work as widely as possible. Conclusion The rising importance of social media and altmetrics can no longer be ignored, and today's nursing academic now has another facet to consider in their scholarly activities. Despite the changing nature of research dissemination, however, it is still important to recognize the undoubted value of established knowledge dissemination routes (that being the peer-reviewed publication). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims To critically examine the representation of ageing identities in popular music texts. Background Having a positive outlook provides both short-term benefits and has been proven to help people live longer. Music is capable of conveying positive and negative emotion towards ageing, however, only a limited number of unpublished studies exist on how age and ageing is represented in popular music. Design Qualitative discourse analysis. Methods In July 2014, a search without time limits was completed of the music lyrics databases, The Music Lyric Database, Songfacts, The Macronium and Absolute lyrics for English language music texts relating to age and ageing. Results Findings revealed ( N = 76) relevant music texts offering up negative and positive discourses of age and ageing, with negative predominating. Identities of age and ageing were categorized as 'contented and celebrated aged', 'pitiful and petulant pensioners' and 'frail and flagging old folks'. Conclusion From this study, it is evident that mainly negative representations of age and ageing are available in popular music texts. It is imagined that the negative representations of age and ageing can be dispiriting, confidence and esteem lowering for older people and their potential impact might be considered carefully by artists. However, while evidence exists that negative and positive emotions can influence health and well-being, further qualitative research is needed to explore what impact precisely the negative texts have on those experiencing ageing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a need for research exploring postgraduate research students' expectations from research supervisors, the characteristics of effective student-supervisor relationships, and the opinions of students and supervisors about research supervision. We also need instruments to explore the student-supervisor relationship. The present study investigated postgraduate research students' and research supervisors' views about postgraduate research supervision and the student supervisor relationship. It also reports on factor analysis conducted to identify the underlying dimensions in their views about postgraduate research supervision and the student supervisor relationship. Such information can be used to develop strategies to promote student-supervisor relationships and enhance the student experience. Data were collected using an online questionnaire with 30 Likert-scale statements from 131 postgraduate research students and 77 supervisors. Following exploratory factor analysis, a three factor model consisting of leaderhip, knowledge, and support was extracted. Results indicate that students and supervisors agree about the attributes of effective supervision. Both supervisors and students consider that a supervisor should have an interest in the student's research. The supervisor must provide timely and constructive feedback and should help the student to manage time effectively. Students and supervisors believe a supervisor should help the students where limitations and learning needs are identified. Students believe supervisors must encourage students to work independently and use opportunities to present their work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim. To examine the construct validity of the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire Short form. Background. Emotional intelligence involves the identification and regulation of our own emotions and the emotions of others. It is therefore a potentially useful construct in the investigation of recruitment and retention in nursing and many questionnaires have been constructed to measure it. Design. Secondary analysis of existing dataset of responses to Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire Short form using concurrent application of Rasch analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. Method. First year undergraduate nursing and computing students completed Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire-Short Form in September 2013. Responses were analysed by synthesising results of Rasch analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. Results. Participants (N = 938) completed Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire Short form. Rasch analysis showed the majority of the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire-Short Form items made a unique contribution to the latent trait of emotional intelligence. Five items did not fit the model and differential item functioning (gender) accounted for this misfit. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed a four-factor structure consisting of: self-confidence, empathy, uncertainty and social connection. All five misfitting items from the Rasch analysis belonged to the 'social connection' factor. Conclusions. The concurrent use of Rasch and factor analysis allowed for novel interpretation of Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire Short form. Much of the response variation in Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire Short form can be accounted for by the social connection factor. Implications for practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author discusses how many papers can be published from one study. The issue of how many papers can be presented in a single study is a matter of debate for researchers, editors and publishers. The practice of publishing multiple outputs from a single study is called salami slicing. Researchers opting to address broader "lumped" rather than more focused "split" questions often generate more data.

ABSTRACT Background Poor nursing adherence to evidence-based guidelines has negative consequences leading to higher mortality rates, delayed recovery and longer length of stay. Evidence-based practice has the potential to minimize complications and discrepancies between nurses. Aim This study aimed to assess nurses' practice and perception of their knowledge and responsibility in relation to enteral nutrition ( EN) in the critically ill. Design and methods This descriptive correlational design was applied to nurses working in intensive care units ( ICUs) from three health care sectors in Jordan (Governmental, Military and Private sectors). Nurses were recruited using a stratified sampling technique. A pre-prepared questionnaire focusing on nurses' practice and perception towards EN was used. Results A total of 253 ICU nurses completed the questionnaire. Nurses revealed a tendency to undertake nutritional care despite the recognition clinical nutrition is a secondary role. In terms of nursing processes, nurses showed greater levels of knowledge and responsibility for 'preventing complications' and 'evaluation' more than 'assessment' and 'identifying goals'. Nurses inadequately assess both gastric residuals and tube placement before feeding. Diarrhoea was the most frequent complication followed by abdominal pain, vomiting, tube dislodgment and weight loss. However, nurses realized that the incidences of complications is less likely when applying evidence-based protocol. Conclusion It is necessary to establish a preliminary assessment for patients' nutritional needs prior to using EN. Aspiration reduction measures are still deficient and need further attention. An evidence-based protocol for EN should be adopted in the critically ill. Relevance to clinical practice This article provides insight into the current practice of Jordanian intensive care nurses in different health care sectors. The study can contribute to redirect the perception of nurses towards nutrition in the critically ill in addition to enhance positive adherence to evidence base. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article o demonstrates why it is worth situating nursing education in universities. It mentions doctoral training confers many essential skills, through doctoral training graduates have demonstrated the ability to identify a research problem or question, set about identifying and synthesizing the extant evidence, identify gaps in evidence then develop and implement a systematic plan to address that gap in knowledge..

The author evaluates the performance of professors of nursing in the Great Britain exploring the variation in the h-index among the professional. Also, includes the list of professors managed by Royal College of Nursing (RCN) Research Society and mentions the name of the professor of University of Manchester Nicky Cullum, who has highest h-index.

Aim To report a pilot study for the development and validation of an instrument to measure quality in historical research papers. Background There are no set criteria to assess historical papers published in nursing journals. Design A three phase mixed method sequential confirmatory design. Methods In 2012, we used a three-phase approach to item generation and content evaluation. In phase 1, we consulted nursing historians using an online survey comprising three open-ended questions and revised the items. In phase 2, we evaluated the revised items for relevance with expert historians using a 4-point Likert scale and Content Validity Index calculation. In phase 3, we conducted reliability testing of the instrument using a 3-point Likert scale. Results In phase 1, 121 responses were generated via the online survey and revised to 40 interrogatively phrased items. In phase 2, five items with an Item Content Validity Index score of ≥0·7 remained. In phase 3, responses from historians resulted in 100% agreement to questions 1, 2 and 4 and 89% and 78%, respectively, to questions 3 and 5. Conclusion Items for the QSHRP have been identified, content validated and reliability tested. This scale improves on previous scales, which over-emphasized source criticism. However, a full-scale study is needed with nursing historians to increase its robustness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Previous work using Mokken scaling analysis with the SF-36 has found subscales appearing to show excellent Mokken scaling properties. However, the values of scalability of the subscales are very large, raising the possibility that these are artificially high and this may result from violations of local stochastic independence between items. Objectives To analyse selected items from the Chinese Mandarin form of the SF-36 scale using Mokken scaling and to investigate if violations of local stochastic independence exaggerate scalability. Methods Exploratory Mokken scaling analysis was run using the online public domain software R by entering 19 items from the Chinese Mandarin form of the SF-36 items into the analysis. The items in the resulting scales, judged by the size of Loevinger's coefficient, were analysed for violations of monotony, 95% confidence intervals and invariant item ordering, including inspection of item pair plots. Results Two Mokken scales were obtained, one including items from the Physical Functioning subscale, and one including items from the Mental Health subscale of the Chinese Mandarin form of the SF-36. The Physical Functioning scale was very strong according to Loevinger's coefficient with high invariant item ordering; the Mental Health scale was moderately strong with weak invariant item ordering. Conclusion The strength of the Physical Functioning Mokken scale derived from the Chinese Mandarin form of the SF-36 is probably the result of an item chain and item overlap which violate local stochastic independence. This is due to the nature of the items in the Physical Functioning subscale, all of which relate to physical ability and some of which can only be achieved if previous items in the subscale have been achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to explore Jordanian nurses’ perspectives on the implementation of evidence-based practice and team-working related to nutritional care in the critically ill. Poor adherence to evidence-based practice and poor collaboration may contribute to nutritional failure. Fourteen critical care nurses from three healthcare sectors in Jordan were selected purposively and interviewed using semi-structured interviews. The information obtained was subjected to a thematic analysis. Four themes emerged from the study: ‘undertaking nutritional responsibilities’, ‘approaching evidence-based practice’, ‘multidisciplinary team working’ and ‘consequences of enteral nutrition care deficits’. Although evidence-based practice was emphasised by nurses, lack of evidence-based resources, and ineffective aspiration reduction measures were found to impede adherence to evidence-based practice. Multidisciplinary team working was introduced as means to improve practice. However, ineffective nursing involvement and poor interaction were obstacles to effective sharing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to explore Jordanian nurses’ perspectives on the implementation of evidence-based practice and team-working related to nutritional care in the critically ill. Poor adherence to evidence-based practice and poor collaboration may contribute to nutritional failure. Fourteen critical care nurses from three healthcare sectors in Jordan were selected purposively and interviewed using semi-structured interviews. The information obtained was subjected to a thematic analysis. Four themes emerged from the study: ‘undertaking nutritional responsibilities’, ‘approaching evidence-based practice’, ‘multidisciplinary team working’ and ‘consequences of enteral nutrition care deficits’. Although evidence-based practice was emphasised by nurses, lack of evidence-based resources, and ineffective aspiration reduction measures were found to impede adherence to evidence-based practice. Multidisciplinary team working was introduced as means to improve practice. However, ineffective nursing involvement and poor interaction were obstacles to effective sharing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to explore Jordanian nurses' perspectives on the implementation of evidence-based practice and team-working related to nutritional care in the critically ill. Poor adherence to evidence-based practice and poor collaboration may contribute to nutritional failure. Fourteen critical care nurses from three healthcare sectors in Jordan were selected purposively and interviewed using semi-structured interviews. The information obtained was subjected to a thematic analysis. Four themes emerged from the study: ‘undertaking nutritional responsibilities’, ‘approaching evidence-based practice’, ‘multidisciplinary team working’ and ‘consequences of enteral nutrition care deficits’. Although evidence-based practice was emphasised by nurses, lack of evidence-based resources, and ineffective aspiration reduction measures were found to impede adherence to evidence-based practice. Multidisciplinary team working was introduced as means to improve practice. However, ineffective nursing involvement and poor interaction were obstacles to effective sharing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Invariant item ordering is important in scales. [•] Invariant item ordering may result from ‘extreme’ items. [•] Items expressing suicidal ideation in scales are often extreme. [•] Inspecting item pair plots can reveal such extreme items. [•] Removing extreme items can reduce or eliminate invariant item ordering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hierarchical scales are useful in understanding the structure of underlying latent traits in many questionnaires. The Attitudes to Ageing Questionnaire (AAQ) explored the attitudes to ageing of older people themselves, and originally described three distinct subscales: (1) Psychosocial Loss (2) Physical Change and (3) Psychological Growth. This study aimed to use Mokken analysis, a method of Item Response Theory, to test for hierarchies within the AAQ and to explore how these relate to underlying latent traits. Methods: Participants in a longitudinal cohort study, the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936, completed a cross-sectional postal survey. Data from 802 participants were analysed using Mokken Scaling analysis. These results were compared with factor analysis using exploratory structural equation modelling. Results: Participants were 51.6% male, mean age 74.0 years (SD 0.28). Three scales were identified from 18 of the 24 items: two weak Mokken scales and one moderate Mokken scale. (1) ‘Vitality’ contained a combination of items from all three previously determined factors of the AAQ, with a hierarchy from physical to psychosocial; (2) ‘Legacy’ contained items exclusively from the Psychological Growth scale, with a hierarchy from individual contributions to passing things on; (3) ‘Exclusion’ contained items from the Psychosocial Loss scale, with a hierarchy from general to specific instances. All of the scales were reliable and statistically significant with ‘Legacy’ showing invariant item ordering. The scales correlate as expected with personality, anxiety and depression. Exploratory SEM mostly confirmed the original factor structure. Conclusions: The concurrent use of factor analysis and Mokken scaling provides additional information about the AAQ. The previously-described factor structure is mostly confirmed. Mokken scaling identifies a new factor relating to vitality, and a hierarchy of responses within three separate scales, referring to vitality, legacy and exclusion. This shows what older people themselves consider important regarding their own ageing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims and objectives. To translate the Edinburgh Feeding Evaluation in Dementia scale (EdFED) into simplified Chinese and to comprehensively evaluate its reliability and validity. Background. The EdFED, the only validated instrument at present for assessing feeding difficulty in older people with dementia, is available in the original English and traditional Chinese versions, but not available in simplified Chinese. The traditional Chinese version may not be applicable in Mainland China because of linguistic and cultural differences. Design. Survey. Methods. The scale was translated into simplified Chinese by the cross-culture translation method, and 102 participants with dementia were assessed. Data were collected by comprehensive methods and analysed by correlation, Mokken scaling and exploratory factor analysis. Results. Reliability and validity were demonstrated for the scale, and a strong and reliable Mokken scale was formed by six items. A three-factor structure was illustrated by exploratory factor analysis, and construct validity was further demonstrated by good convergent and discriminant validity. Conclusions. The simplified Chinese version shows good reliability and validity and can be applicable to measure feeding difficulty in people with dementia in Mainland China and other Chinese cultural groups. More work is required on Mokken scaling, and a confirmatory factor analysis is needed to confirm the three-factor structure. Relevance to clinical practice. The validation of Ch-EdFED has provided a validated instrument for measuring feeding difficulty in people with dementia in Chinese culture; thus, early recognition of feeding difficulty in older people with dementia can be achieved and proper interventions could be designed. Moreover, with the availability of the three different validated versions of the EdFED, research into cross-cultural comparisons could be conducted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses what types of articles that can contribute to the impact factor of the "Journal of Advanced Nursing." The impact factor is defined as a measure of journal performance in terms of citation to the mainstream papers in the journal. An irony to the impact factor is attributed to the strict datelines over which it is calculated. It is concluded that widely read journals do not necessarily have high impact factors.

Highlights: [•] We examine ways to reduce error in the measurement of threshold sooting index TSI. [•] Image analysis is used to determine the height of the flame, an intensity threshold is applied. [•] Fuel uptake rate at incipient smoke trail formation is best metric. [•] Confidence intervals as low as 1% are obtainable for some fuels. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Aims and objectives. To validate a Turkish version of the Caring Dimensions Inventory in a group of Turkish nursing students. Background. There are no studies about how nurses or nursing students perceive caring in nursing in Turkey. There is also no valid and reliable instrument in Turkey for evaluating caring in nursing. Design. Descriptive study design. Methods. Using a convenience sample of nursing students ( n = 266), standard forward-back translation techniques were used with the Caring Dimensions Inventory. An expert panel considered the translations and provided content validation. A final version of the Caring Dimensions Inventory was tested with 10 nursing students, and we found no difficulties with the items in the instrument. Mokken Scaling analysis of the Caring Dimensions Inventory was used. Results. A range of psychosocial and professional/technical items was included in the Mokken scale with 'Providing privacy for a patient' as the most endorsed (mean = 4·66) item and 'Being with a patient during a clinical procedure' being the least endorsed (mean = 3·87). There is a tendency for the most endorsed items to be psychosocial with the professional/technical items being less endorsed, with the exception of the least endorsed item 'Being with a patient during a clinical procedure' which is a psychosocial item. Conclusion. The Turkish version of the Caring Dimensions Inventory is a reliable instrument for measuring nurses' perceptions about caring. Relevance to clinical practice. The results using the Caring Dimensions Inventory will help to identify how caring in nursing is perceived by nursing students in Turkey. Repeating this study in different groups such as working nurses will help to determine nurses who work in clinical settings perceive caring in nursing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims and objectives. To validate a Turkish version of the Caring Dimensions Inventory in a group of Turkish nursing students. Background. There are no studies about how nurses or nursing students perceive caring in nursing in Turkey. There is also no valid and reliable instrument in Turkey for evaluating caring in nursing. Design. Descriptive study design. Methods. Using a convenience sample of nursing students ( n = 266), standard forward-back translation techniques were used with the Caring Dimensions Inventory. An expert panel considered the translations and provided content validation. A final version of the Caring Dimensions Inventory was tested with 10 nursing students, and we found no difficulties with the items in the instrument. Mokken Scaling analysis of the Caring Dimensions Inventory was used. Results. A range of psychosocial and professional/technical items was included in the Mokken scale with 'Providing privacy for a patient' as the most endorsed (mean = 4·66) item and 'Being with a patient during a clinical procedure' being the least endorsed (mean = 3·87). There is a tendency for the most endorsed items to be psychosocial with the professional/technical items being less endorsed, with the exception of the least endorsed item 'Being with a patient during a clinical procedure' which is a psychosocial item. Conclusion. The Turkish version of the Caring Dimensions Inventory is a reliable instrument for measuring nurses' perceptions about caring. Relevance to clinical practice. The results using the Caring Dimensions Inventory will help to identify how caring in nursing is perceived by nursing students in Turkey. Repeating this study in different groups such as working nurses will help to determine nurses who work in clinical settings perceive caring in nursing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been suggested that how individuals respond to self-report items relies on cognitive processing. We hypothesized that an individual's level of cognitive ability may influence these processes such that, if there is a hierarchy of items within a particular questionnaire, as demonstrated by Mokken scaling, the strength of that hierarchy will vary according to cognitive ability. Using data on 8,643 men and women from the National Child Development Survey (1958 birth cohort; Power, & Elliott, 2006), we investigated, using Mokken scaling, whether the 14 items that make up the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale (Tennant et al., 2007)--'-completed when the participants were 50 years of age--form a hierarchy and whether that hierarchy varied according to cognitive ability at age 11 years. Among the sample as a whole, we found a moderately strong unidimensional hierarchy of items (Loevinger's coefficient [H] = 0.48). We split participants into 3 groups according to cognitive ability and analyzed the Mokken scaling properties of each group. Only the medium and high cognitive ability groups had acceptable (->0.3) invariant item ordering (assessed using the HT statistic). This pattern was also found when the 3 cognitive ability groups were assessed within men and women separately. Greater attention should be paid to the content validity of questionnaires to ensure they are applicable across the spectrum of mental ability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims. To demonstrate the principles and application of Mokken scaling. Background. The history and development of Mokken scaling is described, some examples of applications are given, and some recent development of the method are summarised. Design. Secondary analysis of data obtained by cross-sectional survey methods, including self-report and observation. Methods. Data from the Edinburgh Feeding Evaluation in Dementia scale and the Townsend Functional Ability Scale were analysed using the Mokken scaling procedure within the 'R' statistical package. Specifically, invariant item ordering (the extent to which the order of the items in terms of difficulty was the same for all respondents whatever their total scale score) was studied. Results. The Edinburgh Feeding Evaluation in Dementia scale and the Townsend Functional Ability Scale showed no violations of invariant item ordering, although only the Townsend Functional Ability Scale showed a medium accuracy. Conclusion. Mokken scaling is an established method for item response theory analysis with wide application in the social sciences. It provides psychometricians with an additional tool in the development of questionnaires and in the study of individuals and their responses to latent traits. Specifically, with regard to the analyses conducted in this study, the Edinburgh Feeding Evaluation in Dementia scale requires further development and study across different levels of severity of dementia and feeding difficulty. Relevance to clinical practice. Good scales are required for assessment in clinical practice and the present paper shows how a relatively recently developed method for analysing Mokken scales can contribute to this. The two scales used as examples for analysis are highly clinically relevant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author discusses electronic and online publishing and carries out an analysis to determine whether open access and online publishing are the new frontiers in nursing. Only a few open-access nursing journals were found during the analysis and it was difficult to determine whether an online content had higher citations and popularity than print journals. The author however, welcomed the online open access publishing and the challenge it had brought to the traditional publishing industry.

Aim. The aim of this study was to describe the development of a Nurse Cultural Competence Scale using Mokken scaling. Background. The psychometrics of the present cultural competence assessment tools has been questioned. The levels of competence measured by existing tools are not capable of indicating individual differences. Design. This study employed a cross-sectional design. A convenience sample of 172 on-the-job nursing students in a college of technology in Taiwan was recruited. Methods. Based on previous literature, the Nurse Cultural Competence Scale comprising 41 items was developed to measure the concept of cultural awareness, cultural knowledge, cultural sensitivity and cultural skill. Mokken scaling analysis was conducted to investigate the unidimensionality and hierarchical nature of the scale. Results. From the 41 items entered into the Mokken scaling procedure, 20 form a strong Mokken scale. The 20 items form a reliable and statistically significant scale which is negatively skewed. The ordering of the items from lowest to highest difficulty shows a hierarchy. Relevance to clinical practice. Nursing managers and educators may use this scale to assess the levels of cultural competence of their members or students and then provide the education according to individual needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reviews the periodical "Journal of Advanced Nursing."

Background: Hierarchical scales are very useful in clinical practice due to their ability to discriminate precisely between individuals, and the original English version of the Myocardial Infarction Dimensional Assessment Scale has been shown to contain a hierarchy of items. The purpose of this study was to analyse a Mandarin Chinese translation of the Myocardial Infarction Dimensional Assessment Scale for a hierarchy of items according to the criteria of Mokken scaling. Data from 180 Chinese participants who completed the Chinese translation of the Myocardial Infarction Dimensional Assessment Scale were analysed using the Mokken Scaling Procedure and the 'R' statistical programme using the diagnostics available in these programmes. Correlation between Mandarin Chinese items and a Chinese translation of the Short Form (36) Health Survey was also analysed. Findings: Fifteen items from the Mandarin Chinese Myocardial Infarction Dimensional Assessment Scale were retained in a strong and reliable Mokken scale; invariant item ordering was not evident and the Mokken scaled items of the Chinese Myocardial Infarction Dimensional Assessment Scale correlated with the Short Form (36) Health Survey. Conclusions: Items from the Mandarin Chinese Myocardial Infarction Dimensional Assessment Scale form a Mokken scale and this offers further insight into how the items of the Myocardial Infarction Dimensional Assessment Scale relate to the measurement of health-related quality of life people with a myocardial infarction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Church has always been associated with care of the sick; this continues today many clergy see people with mental health issues. Studies outside the United Kingdom have shown that when people with mental health issues visit clergy for help they often do this before, or instead of, seeing health professionals. This study surveyed Christian clergy and asked about the frequency with which clergy saw people with mental health problems, if they referred onto healthcare professionals, what outcomes they expected and their attitudes to mental health. It was concluded that the clergy did see people with mental health problems but the frequency varied amongst individuals and this was not dependent on denomination. These findings agreed with other studies that a very high percentage of British clergy do refer on, unlike North American clergy and this was not related to denomination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a plethora of routes to obtaining a doctorate in nursing and this arises due to international differences in the modes of study, preparation of the final submission and examination systems. The variety of pathways and outcomes leads to some confusion over the status and purpose of doctorates in nursing. In this discursive paper we review the historical development of the doctorate in nursing and describe the various routes to doctorate in Europe, Australia and the United States. There is much in common between the various routes with increasing evidence of formal elements across the countries studies and, especially in the United Kingdom and the United States, evidence that the fitness for purpose of the doctorate in nursing is being examined and changes being introduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Being religious or having spiritual beliefs has been linked to improved health and well-being in several empirical studies. Potential underlying mechanisms can be suggested by psychometrically reliable and valid indices. Two self-report measures of religiosity/spirituality were completed by a cohort of older adults: the Religious Involvement Inventory and the Spiritual Well-being Scale. Both were analyzed using principal components analysis and the Mokken scaling procedure. The latter technique examines whether items can be described as having a hierarchical structure. The results across techniques were comparable and hierarchical structures were discovered in the scales. Analysis of the hierarchy in the RII items suggested the latent trait assesses the extent to which an individual's belief in God influences their life. Examining scales with a range of psychometric techniques may give a better indication of the latent construct being assessed, particularly the hierarchies within these which may be of interest to those investigating religiosity-health associations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to examine the hierarchical and cumulative nature of the 35 items of the Myocardial Infarction Dimensional Assessment Scale (MIDAS), a disease-specific health-related quality of life measure. Data from 668 participants who completed the MIDAS were analysed using the Mokken Scaling Procedure, which is a computer program that searches polychotomous data for hierarchical and cumulative scales on the basis of a range of diagnostic criteria. Fourteen MIDAS items were retained in a Mokken scale and these items included physical activity, insecurity, emotional reaction and dependency items but excluded items related to diet, medication or side-effects. Item difficulty, in item response theory terms, ran from physical activity items (low difficulty) to insecurity, suggesting that the most severe quality of life effect of myocardial infarction is loneliness and isolation. Items from the MIDAS form a strong and reliable Mokken scale, which provides new insight into the relationship between items in the MIDAS and the measurement of quality of life after myocardial infarction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The responses of a predominantly British sample of 479 persons undergoing psychiatric treatment (as in-, out and day patients), and two British samples from the general population, on the Personal Disturbance Scale (DSSI/sAD), were separately subjected to Mokken scale analyses. In all three instances, moderately strong, reliable and statistically significant Mokken scales were produced from the 14 item pool. These scales showed strong similarity in having seven items in common from their respective 10, 10 and 9 item Mokken scale solutions. These results, establishing a hierarchical item ordering, offer further validation for the DSSI/sAD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As the number of adults in older age groups expands, difficulty performing usual activities of daily life is a rising health concern. A common exercise regimen employed to attenuate functional decline and disability has been resistance strength training. However, recent evidence suggests that functional tasks exercise may be more effective in preventing disability. Objective: Activities of Daily Living (ADL) measures are one of the most widely used tools in gerontology, and yet the full sensitivity of these instruments is often not realized. The purpose of this study is to enhance the interpretive power of ADL by formally confirming a hierarchy of decline, assessing discriminatory power, and examining option characteristic curves. Theoretically, a revised ADL instrument can improve the efficacy of functional tasks training programs. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study that employed Item Response Theory (IRT) to interpret ADL outcomes. Participants consisted of community-dwelling older adults (n = 548, aged 79) living in Scotland. Results: A Mokken scale with ρ = 0.77 was obtained, indicating good reliability, and satisfying the IRT assumption that a single unidimensional scale is present. The set H coefficient of 0.48 indicated that the scale may be ordered by decreasing difficulty, with the ‘Cut your own toe-nails?’ item being the most difficult and ‘Tie a good knot in a piece of string?’ being the least difficult. Discriminatory and option characteristic parameters revealed ‘Get on a bus?’ to be the task most closely related to the latent construct and that item options can be used to ascertain critical thresholds for prevention type strategies. Conclusions: Examining parameters relating to difficulty, discriminatory power, and option characteristics facilitated the identification of ADL/Instrumental ADL items that may serve to enhance functional task training in community-dwelling older adults. These analyses demonstrated that functional tasks have differing levels of discriminatory power, and that a task’s discriminatory power is likely to change with varying levels of disability. This observation reinforces the notion that exercises based on functional tasks may differ significantly in their therapeutic effect. Lastly, this study was able to highlight statistically meaningful cut-points relating to when older adults should begin ‘prehabilitation’ interventions. Copyright © 2009 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]