Translation and Validation of the Persian Version of the Nurses Clinical Reasoning Scale (NCRS): A Psychometric Analysis

Nurses need strong clinical reasoning competency because they provide specialized and important care to patients. It is hence necessary to measure nurses’ clinical reasoning by using a valid and reliable tool.

This study aimed to translate and determine the psychometric test of Persian version of the nurses clinical reasoning scale.

This study was a cross-sectional study. In the first step of this methodological study, the English version of Nurses Clinical Reasoning Scale (NCRS) was translated and back-translated. Then the content validity index (CVI) of the items was assessed based on expert views, and its face validity was examined by studying the views of the target group and experts. In the next step, 170 nurses working in hospitals affiliated with Tabriz University of Medical Sciences were asked to complete the instrument. Finally, the construct validity and reliability of this scale were measured using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha), respectively.

The findings showed that the CVI values of all the items were greater than .8. The wording of some items was changed based on the suggestions received regarding face validity, whereas the results of content and face validity did not necessitate the elimination of any of the items. The EFA results also suggested that the Persian version of the NCRS had a two-factor structure with the titles of nursing diagnosis and care knowledge. The Cronbach’s alpha for this scale was 0.91, which confirmed its internal consistency.

This instrument is valid and reliable enough to assess Iranian nurses’ clinical reasoning in the dimensions of nursing diagnosis and care knowledge. The research limitations and further recommendations will be discussed later in this paper.