Original article. Work-related quality of life scale among Singaporean nurses

Background: The Work-Related Quality of Life Scale (WRQLS) was developed for health-care workers in England but might be useful, if valid, in other parts of the world or for other professions.

Objective: We test the construct validity and reliability of the WRQLS as applied to nurses in Singapore.

Methods: A descriptive study was undertaken in 2009 on a sample of 811 nurses at the National University Hospital (NUH) of Singapore who had at least one year’s work experience. The WRQLS was used in order to test its construct validity. Exploratory factor analysis was performed to reduce the factors used to determine WRQLS variance. The Pearson’s correlation was used to evaluate the relationship between the WRQLS and the 12-item short form health survey (SF-12) in order to substantiate conclusions regarding construct validity while Cronbach’s alpha was calculated to test WRQLS reliability.

Results: The median age of the respondents was 31 (IQR=12) and the majority were female (96.9%). The median duration of work experience was seven years (IQR=10). Following the exploratory factor analysis, a five-factor model with 22 items was selected, including; 1) job and career satisfaction, 2) general well-being, 3) home-work interface, 4) stress at work, and 5) working conditions. The correlation coefficient showed a moderate relationship between the WRQLS and mental component scale (MCS-12) (r=0.495); and a weak relationship between the WRQLS and physical component scale (PCS-12) (r=0.149). The Cronbach’s alpha revealed good reliability (r=0.92).

Conclusion: The WRQLS test among nurses in Singapore showed good construct validity and reliability. It could be useful in a working environment in Asia but further testing might be warranted.