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Supportive Supervisory Scale

Instrument Author:

McGilton, K. S.

Source title:

Development and psychometric testing of the Supportive Supervisory Scale

Source:

McGilton, K. S. (2010). Development and psychometric testing of the Supportive Supervisory Scale. [Validation Studies]. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 42(2), 223-232.

Source Author:

McGilton, Katherine S.

Journal Name:

Journal of Nursing Scholarship

Volume:

42

Issue/Part:

2

Year:

2010

Pagination:

223-32

Abstract:

PURPOSE: To describe the development and psychometric testing of the Supportive Supervisory Scale (SSS). METHODS: The development of the items of the scale was based on Winnicott’s relationship theory and on focus groups with 26 healthcare aides (HCAs) and 30 supervisors from six long-term care (LTC) facilities in Ontario, Canada. Content validity of the 15-item instrument was established by a panel of experts. Based on a secondary analysis of data collected from 222 HCAs in 10 LTC facilities in Ontario, Canada, the SSS was subjected to principal components analysis with oblique rotation. FINDINGS: A two-factor solution was accepted, which is consistent with the theoretical conceptualization of the instrument. Factor I was labeled Respects Uniqueness and Factor II was labeled Being Reliable. Internal consistency of Factor I was .95, and that of Factor II was .91. Discriminant validity was also established. The focus groups revealed that “being available to staff” while “recognizing the HCA as an individual, and taking a moment to get to know them” was essential to feeling supported by their supervisor. CONCLUSIONS: The SSS is a reliable and valid measure of supervisory support of supervisors working in LTC facilities. At the core of supportive supervision is the supervisor’s ability to develop and maintain positive relationships with each HCA. It is through respecting the uniqueness of each HCA and being reliable that supervisor-HCA relationships can flourish. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Supportive leadership in LTC settings is a major contributor to HCAs’ job satisfaction and retention and to quality of patient care. Therefore, a tool developed and tested to measure supervisors’ supportive capacities in LTC is primal to evaluate the effectiveness of supervisors in these environments.

Descriptors:

Supportive supervision

Supportive Supervisory Scale

Charge nurses in long-term care

Leadership in long-term care

Number of questions:

15

Response Options:

5 point scale: always, often, occasionally, seldom, never

Validity:

Content validity of the 15-item instrument was established by a panel of experts.

Reliability:

Internal consistency reliability was .94, and the test-retest reliability was .70. Content, construct, and Discrimination Validity were measured. Researcher should review article for full details of these psychometric properties estimates.

Sample Descriptors:

Adult

Health care aides

Supervisors

Long term care facilities

Canada

Sample Items:

Response options: 1=never, 2=seldom, 3=occasionally, 4=often, 5=always

  1. My supervisor recognizes my ability to deliver quality care.
  2. My supervisor tries to meet my needs.

Measure Descriptors:

Supervisory support

Relationships

References:

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Availability:

Contact author: mcgilton.kathy@torontorehab.on.ca

Acronym:

SSS

DOI:

10.1111/j.1547-5069.2009.01323.x

ISBN:

Text

ISSN:

1547-5069

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