Translation and first pilot validation study of the “Undergraduate Nursing Students’ Academic Satisfaction Scale” questionnaire to the Spanish context

Abstract

Satisfaction helps nursing students to develop skills and improve their academic performance, hence the importance of assessing it by means of a reliable instrument. The objective was to translate and culturally adapt the “Undergraduate Nursing Student Academic Satisfaction Scale” (UNSASS) instrument to the Spanish context. A cross-sectional study was conducted with a representative sample of 354 fourth-year nursing students from University of Seville, Seville, Spain. The validation process was carried out in five phases as follows: direct translation, synthesis of the translations, back translation, consolidation by a panel of experts, and pilot test with nursing students. After two rounds among two expert committees, the Content Validity Index (CVI) varied from 0.85 to 1, obtaining a CVI above 0.8 with the global questionnaire. A scale composed of 48 items and 4 subscales was obtained, resulting in a Cronbach’s α coefficient of 0.96. Within the subscales, this coefficient varied between 0.92 and 0.94. No statistically significant differences were found between the total satisfaction of the scale and gender and teaching unit. An inversely proportional relationship was found between the age and the “Support & Resources” scale. The “Escala de Satisfacción Académica del Estudiante de Enfermería” (ESAEE) scale was obtained, translated, and adapted to the Spanish context from the UNSASS scale, with satisfactory consistency and validity.