Discussion
In this study we hypothesized that the EBP activities were associated with characteristics of the individual nurse and the organizational context where the nurse works. The associations between 18 independent variables (five individual and 13 organizational characteristics) and the practice of six distinct EBP activities were examined. One individual factor (EBP capability beliefs) was significantly associated with extensive practice of all EBP activities, and three organizational factors (working in the care of older people, supportive leadership and high collective efficacy) were significantly associated with more extensive practice of three or more of the six EBP activities. These findings support our hypothesis that the six EBP activities are distinct tasks, which require various cognitive skills of the individual and supportive conditions in the organization. In the following we will discuss the implications of these findings for developing strategies for enhancing newly graduated RNs’ practice of EBP.