25+ and Going Strong: Nurse Practitioners and Nursing Practice

The purpose of this study was to examine relationships between role attitudes and values of nurse practitioners and their level of confidence about practice knowledge and skills. The stratified random sample comprised 482 nurse practitioners representing the specialty areas of certified nurse practitioners. Findings indicate a relationship between level of confidence and role orientation. The sample also rated themselves as more confident about hands-on skills than about indirect role components such as utilization of research, change theory, and evaluation of practice outcomes.