The aim of this study was to develop a performance measurement scale for nurses in the hospital setting and to test the reliability and validity of the scale.

This study was conducted in three phases including an application of conceptual framework, development of scale items, and test of validity and reliability of the scale. In order to test validity and reliability, data was collected from 1,966 nurses who work in twenty eight hospitals nation-wide. The data was analyzed by the SAS 8.0 program using descriptive statistics, factor analysis, and reliability coefficients.

The Performance measurement scale consisted of 4 factors which included competency, attitude, willingness to improve, and application of nursing process, and a total of 17 items. The Four factors explained 63.45% of the total variance, and Cronbach's alpha of the scale was .92.

The performance measurement scale developed by this study is a reliable and valid instrument that is utilized effectively to evaluate the performance of hospital nurses. Furthermore, it could be used as a steping stone to assess educational needs of nurses, develop professionalism among nurses, and improve quality of nursing care in the hospital setting.