Skip Navigation
Skip to contents

J Korean Acad Nurs : Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing

OPEN ACCESS

Articles

Page Path
HOME > J Korean Acad Nurs > Volume 43(5); 2013 > Article
Original Article
A Guide on the Use of Factor Analysis in the Assessment of Construct Validity
Hyuncheol Kang
Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing 2013;43(5):587-594.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4040/jkan.2013.43.5.587
Published online: October 31, 2013

Department of Informational Statistics, Hoseo University, Asan, Korea.

Address reprint requests to: Kang, Hyuncheol. Department of Informational Statistics, Hoseo University, 20 Hoseo-ro 79 beon-gil, Asan 336-795, Korea. Tel: +82-41-540-5902, Fax: +82-41-540-5908, hychkang@hoseo.edu
• Received: August 16, 2013   • Accepted: September 17, 2013

© 2013 Korean Society of Nursing Science

  • 33 Views
  • 2 Download
  • 156 Scopus
prev next
  • Purpose
    The purpose of this study is to provide researchers with a simplified approach to undertaking exploratory factor analysis for the assessment of construct validity.
  • Methods
    All articles published in 2010, 2011, and 2012 in Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing were reviewed and other relevant books and articles were chosen for the review.
  • Results
    In this paper, the following were discussed: preliminary analysis process of exploratory factor analysis to examine the sample size, distribution of measured variables, correlation coefficient, and results of KMO measure and Bartlett's test of sphericity. In addition, other areas to be considered in using factor analysis are discussed, including determination of the number of factors, the choice of rotation method or extraction method of the factor structure, and the interpretation of the factor loadings and explained variance.
  • Conclusion
    Content validity is the degree to which elements of an assessment instrument are relevant to and representative of the targeted construct for a particular assessment purpose. This measurement is difficult and challenging and takes a lot of time. Factor analysis is considered one of the strongest approaches to establishing construct validity and is the most commonly used method for establishing construct validity measured by an instrument.
  • 1. Arrindel WA, van der Ende J. An empirical test of the utility of the observations-to-variables ratio in factor and components analysis. Appl Psychol Meas. 1985;9(2):165–178. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/014662168500900205ArticlePDF
  • 2. Barrett PT, Kline P. The observation to variable ratio in factor analysis. Personal Study Group Behav. 1981;1:23–33.
  • 3. Bollen K, Lennox R. Conventional wisdom on measurement:A structural equation perspective. Psychol Bull. 1991;110(2):305–314.Article
  • 4. Cartell L, Harman A. The scree test for the number of factors. Multivar Behav Res. 1966;1:245–276.Article
  • 5. Chin WW. Issue and opinion on structural equation modeling. MIS Q. 1998;22(1):1–10.
  • 6. Cho HD. A study on issues of using structure equation modeling in education study. Seoul, Korea University. 2011;Unpublished master's thesis.
  • 7. Comrey AL, Lee HB. A first course in factor analysis. 2nd ed. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum; 1992.
  • 8. Guilford JP. Psychometric methods. 2nd ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill; 1956.
  • 9. Hair JF, Anderson RE, Tatham RL, Black WC. Multivariate data analysis. 4th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall; 1995.
  • 10. Hogarty KY, Hines CV, Kromrey JD, Ferron JM, Mumford KR. The quality of factor solutions in exploratory factor analysis: The influence of sample size, communality, and overdetermination. Educ Psychol Meas. 2005;65(2):202–226. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0013164404267287ArticlePDF
  • 11. Jarvis CB, MacKenzie SB, Podsakoff PM. A critical review of construct indicators and measurement model misspecification in marketing and consumer research. J Consum Res. 2003;30(2):199–218. http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/376806Article
  • 12. Kaiser HF. An index of factorial simplicity. Psychometrika. 1974;39(1):31–36.ArticlePDF
  • 13. Kang H. Discussions on the suitable interpretation of model fit indices and the strategies to fit model in structural equation modeling. J Korean Data Anal Soc. 2013;15(2):653–668.
  • 14. Kang H, Han ST, Kim K, Jhun M. Multivariate data analysis using SAS by examples. Paju: Freedom Academy; 2005.
  • 15. Lawley DN, Maxwell AE. Factor analysis as a statistical method. 2nd ed. New York, NY: American Elsevier Pub. Co.; 1971.
  • 16. Lee H, Kim JH. Structural equation modeling and AMOS 20.0. Seoul: JypHyunJae Publishing Co.; 2013.
  • 17. MacCallum RC, Browne MW, Sugawara HM. Power analysis and determination of sample size for covariance structure modeling. Psychol Methods. 1996;1(2):130–149.Article
  • 18. MacCallum RC, Widaman KF, Zhang S, Hong S. Sample size in factor analysis. Psychol Methods. 1999;4(1):84–99.Article
  • 19. Munro BH. Statistical methods for health care research. 5th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2005.
  • 20. Nunnally JC. Psychometric theory. 2nd ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill; 1978.
  • 21. Seong TJ. Validity and reliability. 2nd ed. Seoul: Hakjisa Publisher; 2002.
  • 22. Shin HS, Hyun MS, Ku MO, Cho MO, Kim SY, Jeong JS, et al. Analysis of research papers published in the Journal of the Korean Academy of Nursing-focused on research trends, intervention studies, and level of evidence in the research. J Korean Acad Nurs. 2010;40(1):139–149. http://dx.doi.org/10.4040/jkan.2010.40.1.139ArticlePubMed
  • 23. Snook SC, Gorsuch RL. Component analysis versus common factor analysis: A Monte Carlo study. Psychol Bull. 1989;106(1):148–154. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.106.1.148Article
  • 24. Tabachnick BG, Fidell LS. Using multivariate statistics. 5th ed. Boston, MA: Pearson/Allyn & Bacon; 2007.
  • 25. Tafreshi MZ, Yaghmaei F. Factor analysis of construct validity: A review of nursing articles. J Med Educ. 2006;10(1):19–26.
  • 26. Tak JK. Psychological testing: An understanding of development and evaluation method. 2nd ed. Seoul: Hakjisa Publisher; 2007.
  • 27. Williams B, Brown T, Onsman A. Exploratory factor analysis: A five-step guide for novices. J Emerg Prim Health Care. 2012;8(3):Article 1. ArticlePDF
Table 1
The Number of Cases, Variables, and Factors in the Papers of JKAN (2010-2012)
jkan-43-587-i001.jpg
Table 2
Descriptive Statistics from an Example
jkan-43-587-i002.jpg

CV=(SD / Mean)×100(%).

Table 3
Eigenvalues and Explained Variance (SPSS output)
jkan-43-587-i003.jpg
Table 4
χ2 Test for the Number of Factors (SAS output)
jkan-43-587-i004.jpg
Table 5
Factor Loadings, Communalities, and Explained Variances
jkan-43-587-i005.jpg

Orthogonal varimax rotation method is used.

Figure & Data

REFERENCES

    Citations

    Citations to this article as recorded by  

      • Cite
        CITE
        export Copy Download
        Close
        Download Citation
        Download a citation file in RIS format that can be imported by all major citation management software, including EndNote, ProCite, RefWorks, and Reference Manager.

        Format:
        • RIS — For EndNote, ProCite, RefWorks, and most other reference management software
        • BibTeX — For JabRef, BibDesk, and other BibTeX-specific software
        Include:
        • Citation for the content below
        A Guide on the Use of Factor Analysis in the Assessment of Construct Validity
        J Korean Acad Nurs. 2013;43(5):587-594.   Published online October 31, 2013
        Close
      • XML DownloadXML Download
      We recommend
      A Guide on the Use of Factor Analysis in the Assessment of Construct Validity
      A Guide on the Use of Factor Analysis in the Assessment of Construct Validity

      The Number of Cases, Variables, and Factors in the Papers of JKAN (2010-2012)

      Descriptive Statistics from an Example

      CV=(SD / Mean)×100(%).

      Eigenvalues and Explained Variance (SPSS output)

      χ2 Test for the Number of Factors (SAS output)

      Factor Loadings, Communalities, and Explained Variances

      Orthogonal varimax rotation method is used.

      Table 1 The Number of Cases, Variables, and Factors in the Papers of JKAN (2010-2012)

      Table 2 Descriptive Statistics from an Example

      CV=(SD / Mean)×100(%).

      Table 3 Eigenvalues and Explained Variance (SPSS output)

      Table 4 χ2 Test for the Number of Factors (SAS output)

      Table 5 Factor Loadings, Communalities, and Explained Variances

      Orthogonal varimax rotation method is used.


      J Korean Acad Nurs : Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
      Close layer
      TOP