Validity and reliability of the Korean version of authentic leadership among ICU nurses

Background: Authentic leadership affects the safety climate or job satisfaction of nurses, especially in intensive care unit (ICU). It is extremely challenging to find a suitable instrument for measuring authentic leadership among Korean nurses. Because the existing scales were developed within a Western cultural context and among business students, a new scale for measuring authentic leadership among Korean nurses must be evaluated. Objectives: This study aimed to assess the reliability of the Korean version of the Authentic Leadership Inventory (K-ALI) for ICU nurses. Design: A cross-sectional study and secondary data analysis were used. Methods: This study evaluated 203 ICU registered nurses from four South Korean university hospitals. The ALI developed by Neider and Schriesheim was developed. The reliability and validity of this scale were analyzed using Cronbach's alpha and factor analysis. Results: The factor analysis identified two subconstructs that accounted for 57.3 % of the total variance. The overall model fit indices for the K-ALI from the confirmatory factor analysis were an acceptable fit. Cronbach's alpha for the internal consistency of the reliability was 0.92. Conclusion: Using the K-ALI, nurses can assess authentic leadership and develop or demonstrate their professional leadership.