The purposes of this study were to survey nurses at a large pediatric hospital to examine barriers to nursing research and to develop the Barriers to Nurses' Participation in Research Questionnaire (BNPRQ) in preparation for its use at other institutions. The BNPRQ was created and refined through iterative pilot testing. Exploratory factor analysis was applied, and composite scores were computed for the identified factors. The two latent factors "Research Resources" and "Personal Relevance of Research" were extracted. The independent item "lack of time to do research" represented the largest barrier to research. Factor and item scores differed according to subject characteristics. Findings from this study will be used to create targeted interventions to reduce barriers to research participation prevalent in specific groups of nurses. By using the BNPRQ developed in this study, researchers and administrators at other institutions can identify and address barriers to research among their nurses.
Keywords: factor analysis; nursing research.