Sensitivity of a readiness to change survey to change over time and between groups

Abstract

Organizational readiness to change is thought to be critical for successful program implementation. We sought to test whether a workplace readiness survey was sensitive to changes in readiness factors over time and sensitive to differences among workplaces participating in different arms of an implementation trial. The survey was previously developed to assess small workplaces’ readiness to adopt and implement evidence-based wellness programs. It includes measures of attitudinal constructs, Change Commitment and Change Efficacy, thought to be the most proximal determinants of implementation efforts. We conducted a correlational, pre-post analysis of surveys collected from worksites participating in a site-randomized trial of a program to increase implementation of evidence-based health promotion practices. While we found that Wellness Program Efforts increased significantly among intervention arm sites and not control sites, as expected, we found no change in other readiness factors; rather, we observed a significant decline in Change Commitment across all study arms.