Thesis advisor: Dorothy A. Jones / Purpose: The purpose of this study was to define, develop, and psychometrically evaluate a scale designed to measure Nurse’s Perception of the Relationship Based Care Environment. Background: Relationship is a complex multidimensional concept. It is a critical component of professional practice and core to the interaction between nurse and patient. While there are a number of scales available to measure different dimensions of relationships between nurses and other groups there is no one scale that captures multiple dimensions. Methods: Based on a review of the literature and an earlier qualitative study, a theoretical representation was developed. This representation became the framework for development of elements and items for the NPRBCE scale. The content validity of the NPRBCE scale was determined by an expert panel of Registered Nurses. Four hundred and seventy three Registered Nurse participants completed the survey. Analysis: Data were subjected to Principal Components Analysis and Cronbach’s alpha was computed to determine reliability of the scale as a whole and each of the components of the scale. Results: The final solution was a five component 56-item scale. The five components include: nurse/ other discipline; nurse/organization; nurse/ nurse; nurse/ patient- knowing the patient; and nurse/patient-respecting the patient. The scale as a whole and each of the resulting components were found to be reliable. The components were parsimonious and interpretable. Keywords: relationship based care, relationship centered care, nurse practice environment / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2016. / Submitted to: Boston College. Connell School of Nursing. / Discipline: Nursing.

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