Evaluation of a school climate instrument for assessing affective objectives in health professional education.

A conceptual framework for the study of school climate and development of professional caring ability is proposed that is compatible with research on learning environment and socialization. Student input characteristics were measured demographically and through use of previously validated scales from the Parental Bonding Instrument; student outcome characteristics were measured on the Caring Ability Inventory for which considerable empirical validity evidence exists. The primary focus of this evaluation addressed reliability and validity of an instrument designed to assess learning environment that had not previously been used in postsecondary education. Four abbreviated School Climate scales were studied: Respect, Trust, Morale, and Caring. Source data were obtained from the initial phase of a longitudinal study of baccalaureate nursing students throughout the United States. Factor analysis, score reliability, and item-total correlation results indicate the School Climate instrument has indicate the School Climate instrument has theoretical and practical utility for program evaluation and improvement in health professional education.