What Predicts Nurse Faculty Members' Intent to Stay in the Academic Organization? A Structural Equation Model of a National Survey of Nursing Faculty

Objective: To investigate the relations among several factors regarding the academic context within a nationally representative sample of U.S. nursing faculty. Design: Correlational design using structural equation modeling to explore the predictive nature of several factors related to the academic organization and the work life of nursing faculty. Setting: A survey was used to evaluate several aspects of the work life of U.S. nursing faculty members. Participants: Nursing faculty members in academic organizations across the U.S. serving at either CCNE- or NLNAC-accredited institutions of higher education. Methods: Standard confirmatory factor analysis was used to assess the validity of a proposed measurement model, and structural equation modeling was used to evaluate the validity of a structural/latent variable model. Results: Several direct and indirect effects were observed among the factors under investigation. Of special importance, perceptions of nurse administration's support and perceived teaching expertise positively predicted U.S. nursing faculty members' intent to stay in the academic organization. Conclusions: Understanding the way that nursing faculty members' perceptions of the various factors common to the academic context interact with intent to stay in the academic organization is essential for faculty and nursing administrators. This information can assist administrators in obtaining more resources for faculty development to lobby for additional faculty in order to meet the teaching, research, and service missions of the organization; and to personalize relationships with individual faculty members to understand their needs and acknowledge their efforts.