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PORTLAND, Maine

Kelley Strout publishes in ā€˜Journal of Nursing Measurementā€™

Kelley Strout, Ph.D., R.N., assistant professor in the Department of Nursing, and Elizabeth P. Howard, Ph.D., R.N., ACNP-BC, associate professor in the School of Nursing, Bouve College of Health Sciences, Northeastern University and visiting nurse scientist at the Institute for Aging Research in Roslindale, Massachusetts, published their research on August 30, 2014.

Their article, ā€œApplication of Rasch Analysis to Measure Five Dimensions of Wellness among Community Dwelling Older Adults,ā€ appeared in the Journal of Nursing Measurement.

The purpose of the research was to develop an innovative method to measure and score wellness among older adults. The study was guided by William Hettlerā€™s (1976) Dimensions of Wellness theoretical framework. 

The sample of 5,604 community dwelling older adults was drawn from members of the COLLAGE consortium. The Wellness Assessment Tool (WEL) of the COLLAGE assessment system provided the data to create the scores.

Rasch analysis and Masterā€™s Partial Credit method were used to create logit values for each item within the five dimensions of wellness. The items fit the Rasch Model, and the composite scores for each dimension demonstrated high reliability (1.00). 

The person reliability was low: social (.19), intellectual (.33), physical (.29), emotional (.20), and spiritual (.29). The small number of items within each dimension and the homogenous sample appear to have contributed to this low reliability.

Ongoing research using multidimensional tools to measure dimensions of wellness among older adults is needed to advance wellness science and wellness promotion in nursing practice.

 

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The University of 51Š”»Ę³µ is Maineā€™s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of . In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The stateā€™s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maineā€™s only medical college, Maineā€™s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.