Psychometric Properties of the Persian Version of the Social Support Questionnaire in Online Courses: A Transcultural Adaptation and Psychometric Study

Background: Learners perceived social support plays a pivotal role in enhancing engagement, satisfaction, and academic success in online learning. Despite its importance, there is a lack of culturally adapted and psychometrically validated tools for assessing social support among Iranian online learners. This study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Social Support Questionnaire (SSQ) in online courses within the Iranian context.Methods: A total of 399 graduate students from five Iranian universities who enrolled in online courses between November 2023 and January 2024 took part in this transcultural adaptation and psychometric study through convenience sampling. The researchers used a 15-item self-report questionnaire, adapted from five previously validated tools, to assess two dimensions of social support: Emotional and Educational support. The questionnaire was initially translated following a standardized forward-backward translation method. Its psychometric characteristics, such as face validity, content validity, and construct validity, were examined, along with reliability tests measured by Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega coefficients.Results: The translated questionnaire demonstrated satisfactory linguistic and conceptual equivalence, with all item impact scores above 1.5. An expert review established that content validity was satisfactory (Content Validity Ratio (CVR) = 0.75; Content Validity Index (CVI) = 0.81), leading to the retention of all items. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) revealed a clear two-factor structure, explaining 61.35% of the total variance. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) supported the model, with fit indices indicating a good fit (χ²/df=2.98, RFI=0.91, NFI=0.93, CFI=0.95, TLI=0.94, IFI=0.95, RASEA=0.07). Reliability analysis showed high internal consistency, with Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega coefficients ranging from 0.87 to 0.92 for subscales, and 0.94 for the total scale.Conclusion: The Persian version of the SSQ demonstrated robust psychometric properties, confirming it as a reliable and valid tool for assessing social support in online learning environments among Iranian students. This tool can support educators and researchers in identifying students’ social support needs and designing interventions to enhance engagement, well-being, and academic outcomes.