Journal of Advances in Medical Education & Professionalism

Measurement Properties of an Arabic Version of the Jefferson Scale of Empathy (JSE) in Moroccan Medical Students

SOUMAYA BENMAAMAR; HALIMA AMRI; IBTISSAM EL HARCH; SAMIRA EL FAKIR; KARIMA EL RHAZI

Volume 12, Issue 1 , January 2024, , Pages 37-44

https://doi.org/10.30476/jamp.2023.100266.1884

Abstract

Introduction: Empathy is an essential communication skill in the doctor-patient relationship. In fact, measuring its level in medical students is becoming increasingly important. There ... Read More Introduction: Empathy is an essential communication skill in the doctor-patient relationship. In fact, measuring its level in medical students is becoming increasingly important. There is aLack of tools to measure it in Morocco. The aim of this study was to validate the Arabic version of the Jefferson Scale of Empathy (JSE) among Moroccan medical students.Methods: The questionnaire was translated from its original English version to Arabic in accordance with international guidelines for cross-cultural adaptation of self-report measures.After translation and transcultural adaptation, the final Arabic version was administered to a sample of Moroccan medical students. Descriptive statistics at the item level and at the scalelevel were calculated. The internal consistency, reproducibility, criterion, and construct validity were assessed. A multitrait scale analysis was used to examine construct validity. To measurecriterion validity, the Arabic JSE scale was correlated to a visual analog scale (VAS), measuring the level of empathy. The mean of score was compared by gender, year of medical training, andspecialty preference using the Student (t) and ANOVA tests. All statistical analyses were performed by SPSS, Version 26.Results: A total of 201 students participated in the study. The average empathy score was 105.1±13.4. It was higher in female than male students (P=0.003). The Cronbach alpha was 0.76. The instrument has moderate test-retest reliability (ICC=0.6). The results showed a positive and significant correlation between Arabic JSE and VAS (r=0.28, P<0.0001). The multitrait scalinganalysis by testing convergent and discriminant validity confirmed the original scale structure.Conclusion: The adapted Moroccan version of the Jefferson Scale of Empathy proved to be a valid instrument. It demonstrated an acceptable reliability and validity. Indeed, it can be used innational studies to measure empathy in medical students.

Development of Postgraduate Psychiatric Nursing Students’ Clinical Competency Questionnaire

EFFAT SHEIKHBAHAEDDINZADEH; TAHEREH ASHKTORAB; ABBAS EBADI

Volume 11, Issue 4 , October 2023, , Pages 240-251

https://doi.org/10.30476/jamp.2023.98879.1814

Abstract

Introduction: As to the significance of clinical competency, the competency concept should be up-to-date periodically until clinical competency is evaluated based on it. This study ... Read More Introduction: As to the significance of clinical competency, the competency concept should be up-to-date periodically until clinical competency is evaluated based on it. This study aimed to develop and evaluate psychometric properties of a new tool to measure the postgraduate psychiatric nursing students’ competencies.Methods: The current study was conducted with a sequential exploratory mixed-method, in Iran, in 2019 -2022. The qualitative part was conventional content analysis, and the quantitative part was a methodology study. The questionnaire was developed by the item generation via individual semi-structured interviews with 21 participants sampled purposefully, and a literature systematic review. In the quantitative phase, psychometric analysis was performed based onconsensus-based standards for the selection of health status measurement instruments (COSMIN) criteria, and using face, content, and construct (i.e., convergent, known group, and exploratory factor analysis done on 199 postgraduate psychiatric nursing students by available sampling) validity. t-test analysis was used to compare the clinical competenceratings of two groups of experienced and inexperienced postgraduate psychiatric nursing students. Additionally, dependability was examined for internal consistency, stability over a one-month period, and measurement error. The sampling technique used for content validity was deliberate. Then, the responsiveness (through minimally detectablechanges), and interpretability (through minimal important changes) were calculated.Results: The questionnaire consisted of 43 items. Construct validity assessment via exploratory factor analysis (EFA) showed that 67.53% of the cumulative variance was explained by two factors: “Education and nursing care” (23 items) and “Evidence based psychiatric nursing interventions” (20 items). The convergent validity with one golden standard instrument was 0.49. The difference of the clinical competency scores of the two groups of experienced and novice was significant (P<0.001). The internal consistency of the entire instrument, and the first and second factors analyzed using alpha Cronbach (α) were respectively 0.947, 0.897, and 0.891. Stability was confirmed by the ICC agreement 0.956 for interrater (CI 0.907-0.980). Standard error of measurement was 3.14. The competency score of students based on their demographic information was not significant (P>0.05).Conclusion: The 43-item postgraduate psychiatric nursing students’ clinical competency questionnaire is a valid and reliable newly developed instrument. Further studies are recommended to be conducted to assess competency with the largest sample size to promote instrument.

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Keywords = Psychometrics

Measurement Properties of an Arabic Version of the Jefferson Scale of Empathy (JSE) in Moroccan Medical Students

Abstract

Development of Postgraduate Psychiatric Nursing Students’ Clinical Competency Questionnaire

Abstract