Psychometric testing of the Persian version of the nurse caring behavior scale

Background The patient's perception of nurses' caring behaviors predicts the quality of care they receive. Existing measurement tools have either not undergone psychometric evaluation or contain too many items, leading to participant fatigue. This study tested the psychometric properties of the 14-item Persian version of the nurse caring behavior scale (P-NCBS). Methods This cross-sectional study involved 327 hospitalized patients in Bam, Iran. The Nurse Caring Behavior Scale (NCBS) was translated into Persian using a forward-backward translation method. Psychometric evaluation included face validity, content validity, construct validity, and reliability testing. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to assess the scale dimensionality using multiple fit indices such as the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA), the comparative fit index (CFI), the Tucker-Lewis index (TLI), and the standardized root mean square residual (SRMR). Cronbach's alpha and McDonald's omega coefficients were used to evaluate internal consistency. Data analysis was performed using Mplus version 8.1.8 and Jamovi version 2.4.14. Results The unidimensional model of the original scale was tested and confirmed confirmatory factor analysis with suitable fit indices: chi(2) (74, N = 327) = 344.752, p < 0.001; RMSEA = 0.106, CFI = 0.977, TLI = 0.972, and SRMR = 0.033. Both Cronbach's alpha (0.942) and McDonald's omega coefficient (0.943) indicated excellent internal consistency. Item factor loadings ranged from 0.620 to 0.907. The known-groups validity analysis revealed no significant association between demographic variables such as age, gender, education, or occupation and the total score of the Nurse Caring Behavior Scale. Conclusion The Persian version of NCBS can effectively evaluate care behaviors with strong psychometric properties and is applicable in quality audits, practice development, nursing education, and related research.