Validation of the underlying construct in a rating scale to assess the impact of educational research on teaching practice using confirmatory factor analysis

This article examines the validation stages of a rating scale to assess the impact of educational research on teaching practice, paying particular attention to the procedures to validate the underlying construct. To achieve this aim, we considered the research problem, sample availability, and criteria of scientific rigor for developing survey instruments, specifically a rating scale. Data drawn from a rating scale are applied to a sample of 62 teachers at the University of Granada (Spain) and 117 non-university teachers. Through a secondary analysis of the data, the different stages to validate the construct were developed, obtaining three constructs comprising 16 items of the 43 items available. The study shows that confirmatory factor analysis is more powerful than exploratory factor analysis in validating the underlying construct of a measurement instrument (rating scale) and in reducing the scale items.