Cross-cultural adaptation of the Turkish and Kuwaiti teacher–student relationship questionnaire in physical education (TSRQ-PE teacher version): testing for measurement invariance

Background: Within the 3Cs (closeness, commitment, and complementarity) theoretical framework of the quality of two-person relationships, a coach–athlete relationship quality questionnaire (CART-Q) was developed and validated to assess the nature of the coach–athlete relationship. In this study, a modified version of the CART-Q for physical education (PE) was adapted to assess the teacher–student relationship quality in the PE context in Turkey and Kuwait. The purpose of this study was to examine the factorial validity of the teacher–student relationship quality questionnaire (TSRQ-PE) within a sample of Turkish and Kuwaiti physical education teachers. Methods: Multigroup confirmatory factor analysis (MGCFA) was used to test the measurement of cultural invariance between these two groups. A total of 175 teachers from Turkey (n = 73) and Kuwait (n = 102) completed the TPRQ-PE. Results: MGCFA supported the factorial validity of the TPRQ-PE in a three first-order factor model across the two countries. Overall, these results add evidence to the psychometric properties of the TPRQ-PE and suggest that this instrument can be applied to measure the quality of the teacher–student relationship within Turkey and Kuwait, although caution may be required when applied to drawing comparisons between these two counties. Conclusions: The results of the present study could help physical educators and researchers in this field to understand the reasons and methods that lead to a quality teacher–student relationship.