Psychometric evaluation of the Spanish version of the therapeutic communication scale in nursing students

Background: Therapeutic communication is a core component of person-centered nursing care. Despite its clinical relevance, few validated instruments exist in Spanish that objectively assess this competence in undergraduate nursing students. Objective: This study aimed to adapt and validate the Spanish version of the Therapeutic Communication Scale in Nursing Students (TCS-NS), originally developed by Han et al. (2024), and to examine its psychometric properties in a Spanish-speaking context. Methods: A psychometric study was conducted in two phases: (1) translation and cross-cultural adaptation following international guidelines, including expert panel review and pilot testing; and (2) psychometric evaluation with a sample of 468 nursing students. Construct validity was assessed using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and reliability was examined via Cronbach’s alpha, McDonald’s omega, composite reliability, and test-retest stability (ICC). Results: The CFA supported the two-factor structure of the TCS-NS and indicated good model fit (CFI = .963; TLI = .954; RMSEA = .053; SRMR = .044). Internal consistency was adequate for the total scale (α = .880; ω = .884), and composite reliability was high (.936). The intraclass correlation coefficient for the total score was.696 (95% CI:.605–.766). Conclusions: The Spanish version of the TCS-NS is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing therapeutic communication skills in nursing students. Its use may contribute to the objective evaluation of communication competence in educational interventions and research.