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Abstract:
In order to evaluate whether or not nursing curricula are preparing culturally competent graduates, reliable and valid measures are needed. The Inventory for Assessing the Process of Cultural Competence Among Healthcare Professionals-Student Version (IAPCC-SV©) uses a 4-point Likert scale reflecting the response categories of strongly agree, agree, disagree, and strongly disagree. It is based on a Campinha-Bacote's model of cultural competence and measures five cultural constructs: Cultural desire, cultural awareness, cultural knowledge, cultural skill and cultural encounters. Data were collected from a convenience sample of 90 undergraduate nursing students from traditional and accelerated programs at a private university in the Midwestern US. Study results provide empirical support for psychometric qualities of the IAPCC-SV©. Cronbach's alpha for the overall scale was .783. Reliability coefficients were calculated for the instrument's five subscales. The alpha for cultural desire was .67. The remaining 4 subscales were reconceptualized into a single subscale (cultural composite) and yielded an alpha of .74. Concurrent validity of the instrument was not tested so comparison of the IAPCC-SV© against other indicators of cultural competency among nursing students is warranted.
Key Words: Cultural competence, cultural desire, nursing education, psychometric testing
In 1986, the American Nurses Association issued its first position statement on cultural diversity in nursing curricula. Although there is now consensus among nurse educators of the importance of incorporating cultural concepts into the nursing curricula, there is still ongoing discussion surrounding the controversial issue, "How do we effectively evaluate cultural competence in nursing education?" The purpose of this article is to provide nurse educators with a reliable and valid instrument for assessing the level of cultural competence among student nurses.
Changing demographics of the US reflect a more culturally and ethnically diverse population and require a change in the way healthcare providers address illness and wellness issues (Giger, Davidhizar, Purnell, Harden, Phillips, & Strickland, 2007). Compelling research documents the lack of cultural competence among healthcare professionals can result in poor health outcomes (Beach, Rosner, Cooper, Duggan, &Shatzer, 2007; Betancourt, Green, Carillo, & Park, 2005; Smedley, Stith, & Nelson, 2002). Many nursing organizations, including the American Academy of Nursing (AAN), have made recommendations to guide the nursing profession towards a higher level of cultural competence. Recently, an AAN expert panel on Cultural Competence recommended...