validation of the professional identity and values scale among an athletic trainer population

Context: forming a professional identity is a process by which an individual achieves an awareness of his or her own self-concept in the context of the profession. identity in relation to an individual's profession includes the ability to articulate one's role as a professional and professional philosophy. professional identity has been studied extensively in other fields, but currently no professional identity scales have been validated within the athletic training profession. objective: to validate the professional identity and values scale (pivs) among an athletic trainer population. design: cross-sectional study. setting: web-based questionnaire. patients or other participants: athletic trainers employed in national collegiate athletic association division i, ii, iii, or national association of intercollegiate athletics colleges or universities (n = 299, 56.5% female, 43.5% male). the average age of the participants was 33.6 6 8.3 years, and they had 10.3 6 7.6 years of experience. main outcome measure(s): participants were asked to complete a demographic questionnaire and the 32-item pivs. the variables included demographics and the pivs (professional orientation and values subscale [18 items] and the professional development subscale [14 items]). results: exploratory factor analysis reduced the survey from 32 to 20 items and revealed 6 factors. three factors emerged from the professional development subscale and emphasized professional insecurities during the early career stages, the importance of mentors during the intermediate stages, and self-confidence and awareness during the later stages of professional development. an additional 3 factors emerged from the professional orientation and values subscale: (1) patient care and advocacy, (2) professional engagement and collaboration, and (3) personal wellness and values. a cronbach a of 0.80 indicated good internal consistency. conclusions: a modified pivs is a valid and reliable measure of professional identity among athletic trainers employed in the collegiate setting.