Psychometric validity of the Arabic versions of the Simulation Design Scale, Educational Practices Questionnaire, and the Students Satisfaction and Self-Confidence in Learning Scale among Saudi nursing students

Abstract

Introduction: Cross-culturally reliable and validated nursing simulation evaluation tools remain scarce in Arabic-speaking countries. This study determined the factor structure, psychometric properties, and reliability of the Arabic versions of the Simulation Design Scale, the Educational Practices Questionnaire, and the Student Satisfaction and Self-Confidence in Learning Scale among Saudi baccalaureate nursing students. Method: A descriptive cross-sectional design guided this study. Nursing students (n = 1,035) from three state-run universities in Saudi Arabia participated through total enumeration sampling. We used Spearman's rank-order correlation, exploratory factor analysis, Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin test, and Cronbach's alpha to analyze the data. Findings: The number of extracted components in exploratory factor analysis matched the subscales of the three nursing simulation instruments. Our study generated three-factor solutions contrary to the original four-factor Educational Practices Questionnaire. All the scales and subscales had favorable perceptions. In all three questionnaires, the alpha score is >0.7, denoting an acceptable reliability score. Discussion: The translated three simulation instruments created by National League for Nursing were found reliable and valid among a cohort of Arabic-speaking nursing students.