Psychometric analysis of a scale to measure university dropout intention: A pilot study
Published 2025-11-20
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Copyright (c) 2025 Revista Panamericana de Pedagogía

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Abstract
This study, conducted in Yucatán, Mexico, aims to translate and analyze some psychometric properties of the Scale for Measuring Dropout Intention developed by Bäulke et al. (2022) in Yucatán, México. An instrumental, cross-sectional and correlational pilot study was conducted with 71 students from various programs at universities in the state of Yucatán. The instrument was translated into Spanish with the assistance of an expert, and preliminary convergent validity were assessed. Reliability was estimated using Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega. The results show positive and statistically significant correlation with the five dimensions of the instrument: perception of no fitting (r = .394; p < .05), thoughts about dropping out (r = .313; p < .05), analysis (r = .320; p < .05), information seeking and final decision, as well as with the total score of the scale (r = .394; p < .05). Negative and statistically significant correlations were observed with motivation and academic self-efficacy. The instrument demonstrated adequate internal consistency across all its dimensions (α = .843 – .997; ω = .849 – .996) and in for the overall scale (α = .973; ω = .978). These results provide valuable insights for guiding the measurement of the phenomenon within this context and highlight the relevance of conducting future research with large and more diverse samples.
Keywords
- Dropping out,
- Higher education,
- Measurement,
- Reliability,
- Validity
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