Personal Background Preparation Survey for Early Identification of Nursing Students at Risk for Attrition

Abstract

During 2004 and 2005 orientations, all 187 and 188 new matriculates, respectively, in two southwestern U.S. nursing schools completed Personal Background and Preparation Surveys (PBPS) in the first predictive validity study of a diagnostic and prescriptive instrument for averting adverse academic status events (AASE) among nursing or health science professional students. One standard deviation increases in PBPS risks (p < 0.05) multiplied odds of first-year or second-year AASE by approximately 150%, controlling for school affiliation and underrepresented minority student (URMS) status. AASE odds one standard deviation above mean were 216% to 250% those one standard deviation below mean. Odds of first-year or second-year AASE for URMS one standard deviation above the 2004 PBPS mean were 587% those for non-URMS one standard deviation below mean. The PBPS consistently and significantly facilitated early identification of nursing students at risk for AASE, enabling proactive targeting of interventions for risk amelioration and AASE or attrition prevention.

Using the personal background preparation survey to identify health science professions students at risk for adverse academic events

“…A valid measure of each student's degree of risk, PBPS total risks, was then operationalized as the student's total number of risks (i.e., the sum of their risk-item scores). PBPS total risks have previously demonstrated consistent, statistically significant, and substantial predictive validity for the occurrence of 1st-and 2nd-year AASE among populations of nursing students in two diverse nursing schools (Johnson et al 2009b). Reliability of the 47 dichotomously scored 2004 PBPS noncognitive risk items was previously assessed using the SPSS 13 RELIABILITY procedure, yielding Cronbach a = .77 (Johnson et al 2009b).…”

“…PBPS total risks have previously demonstrated consistent, statistically significant, and substantial predictive validity for the occurrence of 1st-and 2nd-year AASE among populations of nursing students in two diverse nursing schools (Johnson et al 2009b). Reliability of the 47 dichotomously scored 2004 PBPS noncognitive risk items was previously assessed using the SPSS 13 RELIABILITY procedure, yielding Cronbach a = .77 (Johnson et al 2009b). The SPSS 15 RELIABILITY procedure yielded Cronbach a = .75 for the 526 respondents to the 64 risk items of the 2005 PBPS and Cronbach a = .80 for an additional 589 new 2006 matriculates enrolled from the five schools and four disciplines of the present study.…”

“…Johnson et al (2009b) concluded, ''The PBPS consistently and significantly facilitated early identification of AASE-risk nursing students, enabling proactive targeting of interventions for risk amelioration and AASE or attrition prevention. ''…”

“…Individualized confidential PBPS Reports present each student's overall and categorized risk totals, identify each student's risks, and describe interventions or resources for amelioration of identified risks. To achieve content validity, PBPS development followed the approach of Sedlacek (1984, 1987) described by Johnson et al (2009b). The 2004 PBPS contained 69 items while the revised 2005 PBPS contained 83 items.…”

“…For the binary AASE criterion variables, AASE occurrence was defined, consistent with Johnson et al (2009b), as the presence of any of the following adverse academic status event codes in a student's record during an academic year: (DN) dismissal due to academic record, (FW) fall semester warning, (IG) insufficient grade(s), (LOA) leave of absence, (PT/AP) switched to part time/alternate pathway, (RA) remedial assistance, (RC) repeat of course(s), (RY) repeat of year, (SW) spring semester warning, (SP) suspended from program, (WC) withdrew from course, or (WD) withdrew from program. These 12 academic status codes operationalized precursors or types of student attrition.…”