Self-Perceived Competence and General Happiness Scores Among Acute-Care Nurses in the United Arab Emirates: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Authors

Ibrahim Al Faouri, Rahma Nemer, Fatma Magdi Ibrahim

Published in

Nursing open. Volume 13. Issue 10. Pages e70928.

Abstract

To examine the association between scores on an investigator-adapted self-perceived nursing competence questionnaire and a five-point modification of the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire among registered nurses in one acute-care hospital in the United Arab Emirates.
Cross-sectional correlational survey.
Between 15 September and 15 November 2025, 200 direct-care registered nurses completed an online survey. Self-perceived competence was scored with a 21-item investigator-adapted questionnaire informed by Nurse Competence Scale domains; general happiness was scored with a 29-item Oxford Happiness Questionnaire modified to use five response categories. Neither modified score is established as psychometrically equivalent to its source instrument. Exploratory factor analysis, correlation and covariate-adjusted linear regression with HC3 robust inference were used.
The adapted scores correlated modestly (r = 0.293, 95% CI 0.160-0.414); the adjusted competence-score coefficient was B = 0.440 (95% CI 0.248-0.633). Removing a competence item about feeling valued and supported within the team yielded r = 0.290 and adjusted B = 0.447 (95% CI 0.248-0.645). Exploratory factor analyses indicated factorability but did not validate either adaptation: the competence items did not reproduce seven intended domains, and happiness items primarily separated by wording polarity.
Higher scores on the locally adapted self-perceived competence questionnaire were associated with higher scores on the modified general happiness questionnaire. The modest, cross-sectional, concurrent self-report association does not establish construct equivalence, direction of effect or benefits from competence training.
Support for professional capability may be considered as one component of a broader workforce strategy that addresses staffing, workload, leadership, recognition and psychological safety.
Earlier research examined competence and happiness among nurses in Iran; this study extends the question to a contemporary multicultural UAE acute-care sample. Its modest association between adapted questionnaire scores is useful for hypothesis generation, subject to measurement and sampling limitations.
The study is reported in accordance with the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology checklist for cross-sectional studies.
No patients or members of the public contributed because this study examined registered nurses as professional participants; nurses contributed only as survey respondents.

PMID:
42885168
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 16 Oct 2026.

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