Developing a scale to measure epistemic trust in open educational resources (OERs)

PurposeThe purpose of the study was to develop and validate a scale for measuring epistemic trust in open educational resources (OERs).Design/methodology/approachA mixed methods approach was employed, using both qualitative and quantitative methods. The scale development involved several stages, including various iterations of exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA).FindingsThe study resulted in a valid and reliable nine-factor scale for measuring epistemic trust in OERs. These factors are reliability and credibility of information, source competence and expertise, goodwill and intentions of the source, transparency and openness, consistency and stability, accessibility and usability, peer and social validation, engagement and interaction and ethical and moral integrity. The CFA confirmed the nine-factor structure and showed good model fit. Cronbach's alpha coefficients for the dimensions ranged from 0.668 to 0.823, indicating acceptable to excellent internal consistency. Extracted (AVE) value for each factor indicates the strong convergent validity of the scale.Research limitations/implicationsThe study's focus is on measuring epistemic trust of university students in OERs.Practical implicationsBy providing a reliable and valid instrument to measure epistemic trust in OERs, the study provides a practical approach for OER creation, curation and use.Social implicationsThe study proposes a framework for combating misinformation by providing a scale to assess the epistemic trust in OERs.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study to develop a comprehensive scale specifically designed to measure epistemic trust in OERs.