Measuring Job Frustration in Omani Healthcare Workers: Development and Psychometric Validation of the OJFQ

Background The western existing scales such as Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI)to measure employee burnout are often critiqued in relation to cultural sensitivity while being implemented in non-western settings as evidenced within the limitations of the local study findings. Therefore, since Omani society values social stability while being integrated with employment, there is a demanding necessity for developing a culture-sensitive scale to measure occupational frustration among healthcare workers (HCWs). Objective This study aimed to develop and validate the Omani Job Frustration Questionnaire (OJFQ) , a culturally grounded instrument intended to assess job frustration and associated burnout factors among Omani HCWs. Methods The development of the scale was considered following a sequential mixed-methods approach. Set of six focus group discussions (FGDs) with 42 nurses in the mental health setting steered initial item generation guided by conceptual frameworks from the MARS model, and CBI. Expert reviews involving 16 professionals from Oman and Malaysia were conducted to refine the item pool ending up with a 45-item OJFQ. The newly developed scale was surveyed on 140 participants from mental health setting getting a response rate of 99.3%. The data analysis was conducted in presenting details of descriptive statistics, Cronbach’s alpha, exploratory factor analysis (EFA), item analysis and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to assess scale validity. Results The final scale included 37-item across five constructs after conducting EFA: (1) management and role clarity, (2) emotional intelligence and professional coping strategies, (3) career development and engagement, (4) workplace bureaucracy and social challenges, and (5) workplace resources and stability. The scale demonstrated strong internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = 0.841), the five constructs were significantly correlated with the total score, construct validity is confirmed through CFA with good model fit indices. In addition, there was no significant correlation with the CBI, indicating the measurement of a distinct construct. Conclusion The OJFQ is a psychometrically sound and culturally tailored instrument for assessing occupational frustration among HCWs in Oman. Its development addresses critical gaps in culturally relevant measurement tools in the region. Further validation across diverse healthcare disciplines and settings is recommended.