2.3. Measuring Instruments

The use of the original version of the questionnaire was authorised via email by the original authors in October 2018, who provided the 2002 English version (II) of the questionnaire. The overall Cronbach’s alpha value was 0.94, indicating a good level of internal consistency for all 34 items in the questionnaire [20]. Responses to the statements used the original 5-choice Likert format: (1) do not agree at all; (2) agree to a very little extent; (3) agree to a certain extent; (4) agree to a great extent; and (5) agree to a very great extent. The factor dimensions of the original instrument, the number of statements associated with them, and their Cronbach’s alpha values are presented below [20,21]:

Factor 1 ‘Research language’ describes the language used in scientific and nursing research (two statements, Cronbach’s alpha: 0.78).

Factor 2 ‘Need for research knowledge’ describes nursing research and the nursing researcher as necessary for nursing practice (five statements, Cronbach’s alpha: 0.80).

Factor 3 ‘Participation’ describes the nurses and the extent to which they participate in nursing research in their daily work (six statements, Cronbach’s alpha: 0.84).

Factor 4 ‘The Profession’ describes the nursing profession and its inherent professional skills as either vocationally orientated or academically orientated (five statements, Cronbach’s alpha: 0.77).

Factor 5 ‘Meaningfulness’ describes the nurses’ interest in and use of nursing research in the nursing area (five statements, Cronbach’s alpha: 0.75).

Factor 6 ‘Study literature’ describes the need to read articles and research reports about nursing and to keep up to date in other ways (six statements, Cronbach’s alpha: 0.78).

Factor 7 ‘Development—Resources’ describes the nursing profession as including the testing of new ideas that are based on experience and science, as well as the importance of human resources at the workplace (five statements, Cronbach’s alpha: 0.60).

The form used in this study consisted of three parts: (a) basic sociodemographic data (age and sex); (b) questions, adapted to the Spanish context, on training (initial or advanced), work experience (years and location), and research experience (principal investigator or collaborator, types of tasks performed, and publications); and (c) statements on attitudes towards nursing research and development.