Validation of the Spanish version of the five-item General Self-Efficacy (GSE) scale in a sample of nursing students: Evidence of validity, reliability, longitudinal invariance and changes in general self-efficacy and resilience in a two-wave cross-lagged panel model

Laura Galiana; Javier Sánchez-Ruiz; Juan Gómez-Salgado; Philip J Larkin; Noemí Sansó

doi:10.1016/j.nepr.2023.103865

Validation of the Spanish version of the five-item General Self-Efficacy (GSE) scale in a sample of nursing students: Evidence of validity, reliability, longitudinal invariance and changes in general self-efficacy and resilience in a two-wave cross-lagged panel model

Nurse Educ Pract. 2024 Jan:74:103865. doi: 10.1016/j.nepr.2023.103865. Epub 2023 Dec 10.

Authors

Laura Galiana¹, Javier Sánchez-Ruiz¹, Juan Gómez-Salgado², Philip J Larkin³, Noemí Sansó⁴

Affiliations

¹ Advanced Research Methods Applied to Quality of Life promotion - ARMAQoL, Department of Methodology for the Behavioral Sciences, University of Valencia, Spain.
² Department of Sociology, Social Work and Public Health, Faculty of Labour Sciences, University of Huelva, Huelva, Spain; Safety and Health Postgraduate Programme, Universidad Espíritu Santo, Guayaquil, Ecuador.
³ Chair of Palliative Care Nursing. Palliative and Supportive Care Service, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Switzerland.
⁴ Balearic Islands Health Research Institute (IDISBA). Valldemossa Road, Km 7.5, Palma 07122, Spain; Department of Nursing and Physiotherapy, University of Balearic Islands, Palma, Spain. Electronic address: Noemi.sanso@uib.es.

PMID: 38128375
DOI: 10.1016/j.nepr.2023.103865

Abstract

Aim: The aim of this study is to validate the Spanish version of the five-item General Self-Efficacy scale in a sample of nursing students, by: 1) offering evidence of validity and reliability; 2) studying the longitudinal measurement invariance of the scale; 3) providing evidence on the changes in the levels of self-efficacy that occur after one year of nursing education; and 4) offering longitudinal evidence on the relationship between nursing students' self-efficacy and resilience levels.

Background: Nurses' general self-efficacy has been related to both personal and organizational outcomes. In Spain, some competencies the students must acquire during the Degree in Nursing implicitly refer to self-efficacy. For the measurement of general self-efficacy, the General Self-Efficacy Scale is one of the most widely used in Europe.

Design: A longitudinal design was used. Research took place at the University of Valencia and the University of the Balearic Islands (Spain). Participants were 324 nursing students, in the first year of the Nursing Degree.

Methods: The five-item General Self-Efficacy scale and the Brief Resilience Coping Scale were used. Analyses included descriptive statistics, reliability estimates, confirmatory factor analysis, a longitudinal measurement invariance routine and several competing cross-lagged models.

Results: Evidence of reliability shown by the scale was adequate and a one-factor solution for the structure was found. Additionally, the five-item GSE showed evidence of invariance over time. A causal effect of self-efficacy on nursing students' levels of resilience was found.

Conclusions: The Spanish version of the five-item General Self-Efficacy scale is a brief instrument that can contribute to the assessment of some of the basic competencies of the Degree in Nursing, which improve during their education and how these changes are related to other skills important for the nursing profession, such as resilience.

Keywords: General self-efficacy; Longitudinal invariance; Nursing students; Reliability; Resilience; Validity.

MeSH terms

Cross-Sectional Studies
Humans
Psychometrics
Reproducibility of Results
Resilience, Psychological*
Self Efficacy
Students, Nursing*
Surveys and Questionnaires