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An important part of studies on psychology of behavior and learning, as well as social and health sciences requires the use of researcher-made questionnaires. To achieve valid results and provide the possibility of publishing the results of a research, researchers seek suitable methods to assess the validity of research tools. This is mainly due to the fact that failure to provide such an important feature in a research tool might lead to the waste of effort and resources allocated to the study. One of the conventional types of validity of measurement tools is construct validity, which is often assessed as one of the most valid statistical techniques using factor analysis method. Generally, factor analysis applies statistical processes to simplify the related measurements and discover a pattern from a group of variables. This method is mainly used to find the simplest way to interpret the observed data. In several fields, including behavioral sciences and psychology, social sciences, medical sciences and nursing, economics, and geography, factor analysis is used as one of the important achievements of technology advancement in computers. In the present research, stages and methods of exploratory factor analysis are discussed and described step-by-step by using SPSS.

Background & Aim: It is crucial to assess communication skills among health workers using valid culture-based instruments. This study aimed to develop and assess psychometric properties of the Interpersonal Communication Skills Scale among Zanjan Health Volunteers. Methods & Materials: In this study, a total of 191 health volunteers participated in a self-rating assessment of the Communication Skills Scale (CSS). Moreover, 14 experts were asked to rate each item based on the relevance, clarity, and simplicity. Through a literature review, we developed an instrument with 43 items. The validity of the instrument was determined using the impact item method, content validity ratio (CVR), content validity index (CVI), face validity and exploratory factor analysis. Reliability of the instrument was reported by Alpha Cronbach coefficient. The CSS finally contained 35 items, divided into two categories: general and specific communication skills. Results: Of 43 items, those with impact item index over 1.5, CVR over 0.51, and CVI over 0.79 were considered as valid while the rest were discarded resulting in a 35-item scale. Factor analysis was carried out to determine the relationship among the items of the CSS. Exploratory factor analysis reduced the list of items to 30, which were divided into seven groups with a minimum eigenvalue of 1 for each factor, capable of predicting 68.8% of the variance. Internal reliability of the scale was determined by alpha Cronbach coefficient (0.91). Conclusion: The results of this study indicated that the CSS is a valid and reliable instrument for assessment of the communication skills among health volunteers in Zanjan. These findings could be used for developing similar instruments in other health worker groups.

Background & Aim: It is crucial to assess communication skills among health workers using valid culture-based instruments. This study aimed to develop and assess psychometric properties of the Interpersonal Communication Skills Scale among Zanjan Health Volunteers. Methods & Materials: In this study, a total of 191 health volunteers participated in a self-rating assessment of the Communication Skills Scale (CSS). Moreover, 14 experts were asked to rate each item based on the relevance, clarity, and simplicity. Through a literature review, we developed an instrument with 43 items. The validity of the instrument was determined using the impact item method, content validity ratio (CVR), content validity index (CVI), face validity and exploratory factor analysis. Reliability of the instrument was reported by Alpha Cronbach coefficient. The CSS finally contained 35 items, divided into two categories: general and specific communication skills. Results: Of 43 items, those with impact item index over 1.5, CVR over 0.51, and CVI over 0.79 were considered as valid; while the rest were discarded resulting in a 35-item scale. Factor analysis was carried out to determine the relationship among the items of the CSS. Exploratory factor analysis reduced the list of items to 30, which were divided into seven groups with a minimum eigenvalue of 1 for each factor, capable of predicting 68.8% of the variance. Internal reliability of the scale was determined by alpha Cronbach coefficient (0.91). Conclusion: The results of this study indicated that the CSS is a valid and reliable instrument for assessment of the communication skills among health volunteers in Zanjan. These findings could be used for developing similar instruments in other health worker groups.