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

AIM: 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.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional correlational survey.

METHODS

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.

RESULTS

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.

CONCLUSION

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.

IMPLICATIONS FOR THE PROFESSION AND/OR PATIENT CARE: Support for professional capability may be considered as one component of a broader workforce strategy that addresses staffing, workload, leadership, recognition and psychological safety.

IMPACT: 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.

REPORTING METHOD: The study is reported in accordance with the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology checklist for cross-sectional studies.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: No patients or members of the public contributed because this study examined registered nurses as professional participants; nurses contributed only as survey respondents.