Development and validation of a flow state scale for healthcare professionals

Purpose: Nowadays, healthcare workers generally face mental health risks such as occupational burnout, depression, and low job satisfaction, which negatively affect both their physical and mental well-being as well as organizational performance. Flow, as a positive internal motivational state, may help address these challenges. Therefore, this study aimed to develop and validate a flow state scale suitable for healthcare professionals offering a scientific and useful instrument for evaluating flow experience among healthcare workers. Methods: = 620) was used for cross-validation. Results: = 2.661, RMSEA = 0.073, GFI = 0.915, AGFI = 0.878, SRMR = 0.049, RMR = 0.037). While the AGFI value fell slightly below the 0.90 threshold for "good" fit, it exceeded the acceptable criterion of 0.85, and all other indices indicated good model fit. The final model was developed using the first subsample (12 items deleted based on modification indices) and cross-validated in an independent second subsample. The scale also demonstrated sound convergent and discriminant validity. Conclusion: The flow state scale for healthcare professionals has good reliability and validity. It can serve as an effective tool for assessing the flow state among healthcare professionals and provides a valuable reference for healthcare institutions in management practices such as personnel motivation, burnout intervention, performance management, and further service quality improvement.