Development and psychometric properties testing of the Non-Cognitive Skills Scale for nursing students

Abstract

Background: Non-cognitive skills are crucial for nursing students to achieve their academic performance successfully and perform clinical practice effectively. Although different non-cognitive assessment tools have been established in various disciplines, few are focused on nursing students.

Objective: The study aims to develop and psychometrically validate the Non-Cognitive Skills Scale (NCSS) for nursing students.

Design: Qualitative and quantitative research design.

Setting: One university in Singapore.

Participants: A total of 347 nursing educators and students participated in this study.

Methods: A two-phase design was used. In the first phase, focus group discussions and literature reviews were conducted to generate the preliminary items of the NCSS. Content validity was established with an expert panel of 10 members, and the tool was pilot tested on 20 students. In the second phase, the number of items was reduced based on correlation coefficients and factor loading. The psychometric properties of the NCSS were tested on survey responses from 300 students. The Brief Resilience Scale, Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire, and Big Five Inventory-10 were used to investigate concurrent and convergent validity.

Results: A 39-item six-factor NCSS was developed with satisfactory model fit indices (χ²/df: 1.60, IFI: 0.92, TLI: 0.90, CFI: 0.92 and RMSEA: 0.05). Content validity was confirmed with a content validity index of 0.90. A pilot test was conducted to improve readability and clarity. Known-group validity discriminated against age and gender group differences in a predictable way. Concurrent validity and convergent validity were confirmed with acceptable correlation coefficients. Cronbach's α was 0.91, and test-retest reliability was 0.84.

Conclusions: The NCSS is a reliable and valid tool for assessing the non-cognitive attributes of nursing students. This scale can be considered an admission tool for selecting the suitability of nursing applicants for nursing programmes. Further validation of NCSS is needed using a longitudinal study design in multiple settings across countries.

Keywords: Emotional intelligence; Non-cognitive skills; Nursing students; Personality; Resilience.