A confirmatory factor analysis of the S elf‐ D irected L earning R eadiness S cale

The S elf‐ D irected L earning R eadiness S cale measures readiness for self‐directed learning among undergraduate healthcare students. While several exploratory factor analyses and one confirmatory factor analysis have examined the psychometric properties of the S elf‐ D irected L earning R eadiness S cale, questions have been raised regarding the underlying latent constructs being measured. The objective of this study was to determine the best‐fitting S elf‐ D irected L earning R eadiness S cale factorial structure among three models published in the literature. Data from the three‐factor 40‐item S elf‐ D irected L earning R eadiness S cale completed by 233 undergraduate paramedic students from four Australian universities (response rate of 26%) were analyzed using maximum likelihood confirmatory factor analysis. Comparison of model fit from the 40‐item version was undertaken with the previously documented four‐factor 36‐item and three‐factor 29‐item S elf‐ D irected L earning R eadiness S cales. The model fit indices of the three one‐factor congeneric models with maximum likelihood analysis demonstrate that the 40‐item S elf‐ D irected L earning R eadiness S cale does not fit the data well. The best fitting model was the four‐factor 36‐item S elf‐ D irected L earning R eadiness S cale followed by the three‐factor 29‐item models. The confirmatory factor analysis results did not support the overall construct validity of the original 40‐item S elf‐ D irected L earning R eadiness S cale.