Adaptation, validation, and factorial invariance of a scale to assess the quality of virtual courses developed for Peruvian health sciences students during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Objective: To adapt, validate and evaluate the factorial invariance of a scale that assess the quality of virtual courses (QVC) among health sciences students (HSS). Methods: Cross-sectional study developed with virtual surveys to HSS to assess the QVC of the 2020 academic year, as well as sociodemographic and educational characteristics. Content-based validity was estimated with VAiken. Validity based on internal structure was assessed with the Goodness of Fit Indices (GFI) in the Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), considering adequate the comparative fit index (CFI) and the Tucker-Lewis index (TLI) greater than 0.90, as well as values of the standardized root mean square residual (SRMR) and root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) less than 0.08. Factor invariance was considered adequate when the ΔCFI ≤ 0.010 and the ΔRMSEA ≤ 0.015 between models at different levels. Reliability was assessed with the alpha and omega index. Results: Of the 629 HSS included, 62.96% were women, 49.76% studied human medicine and 316 other health areas. The VAiken was 0.86 on the instrument. The CFA showed adequate GFI (CFI = 0.956, TLI = 0.950, RMSEA = 0.073 and SRMR = 0.044). The ΔCFI (≤ 0.002) and ΔRMSEA (≤ 0.004) between models were estimated for the characteristics evaluated (sex, place of residence, study career, stage of training and type of university management). Reliability indices were greater than 0.85 in the domains. Conclusion: The 30-item scale and six domains to assess QVC developed for HSS in Peru showed adequate evidence of validity and reliability. In addition, it showed adequate factorial invariance in different sociodemographic and educational contexts of HSS.