**4. Discussion and Conclusions**

The implemented scale reveals itself as a highly reliable instrument, a fact clearly related to the data in previous studies [4,22]. Scientific literature [35] suggests that in initial or exploratory studies, reliability values of up to 0.6 can be valid as well. In the same line of thought, Lowental [36] points out that in scales with few items encompassing a maximum of 10, a reliability of 0.4 can also be

acceptable. Considering these last words, there is only one of the implemented scales in this research with a reliability value close to 0.6, the Language dimension. This fact could be due to several aspects, but the one believed is that there is a possibility that items 2 and 3 were poorly defined. Similarly, item sensitivity to the sense of scale may be due to the fact that, in the university context, feedback is a barely common practice [37]. For example, the use of conditionals can be interpreted di fferently by pupils in those university contexts where a teaching culture oriented towards the development of reflective thinking is not deliberately disclosed [38]. In any case, this shows that in future applications of the questionnaire, the stability or variation of this indicator should be studied [33].

The evidence of validity reveals that the underlying relational structure of the questionnaire (RMSEA = 0.037; CFI = 0.943) is integrated by eight dimensions in coherence with the established theoretical model [24]. Thus, the number of items and their accuracy to measure the dimension account for their adequate stability [39]. The interaction of item commonalities and sample size are high, resulting in latent dimensions being very well represented [40]. The results of the AFC show that the conceptual reference is well defined. These results are highly comparable to previous studies [4,22]. In the same way, correlations between dimensions that present an adequate behaviour are displayed, leading to the observation that all the latent variables maintain a statistically significant correlation. This observable pattern is linked to the data obtained in a five-year longitudinal study in learning communities in Melbourne, where researchers stated that an exploration of these eight cultural forces provides the conceptual and practical backbone to focus the exploration of thinking for the active construction of student learning and to create a classroom culture [24].

In this validation study, it is possible to establish that the empirical criterion is ideal for the process of validation of the scale through a sample of university students. In consequence, three things can be concluded:


they are di fferent items [45], they have also been used in a psychometric questionnaire for the assessment of (German) university students.

To sum up, the use of this type of questionnaire is essential to strengthen reflective thinking at university. It contributes to the implementation of successful teaching and learning models [22,24,33,46–49], that is, models that simultaneously facilitate the learning of conceptual domains and the development of cognitive skills such as thinking, language, communication, perception, comprehension and reasoning. Such models are also expected to promote the use of narrative methodologies [42] or the reflective narrative learning through writing [50,51] that expose students to real-life situations, allowing them to approach real problems, to participate in debates and to propose solutions to the given problems. In that matter, universities are responsible for helping future professionals to acquire the knowledge and to develop cognitive/mental skills and habits ensuring trainees to be able to reflect on their own beliefs and decisions. The reason is that trainees need to be aware and critical of their own assumptions, able to engage openly with di fferent cultural forms and historical moments and able to develop problem-solving skills—all in a sustained paradigm of transformational, critical and reflective lifelong learning. Such expectations are established by potential employers expecting employees to own these skills [43].

The promotion of reflective thinking through the didactical implementation of cultural forces in the training of education degree students has little development from quantitative approaches [4,22]. Generally, the vast number of investigations approaching the topic qualitatively [20,38,42] have provided evidence on the benefits of training teachers and leading classroom learning towards reflexive learning about education fostering the professional development of the students. Fostering is barely promoted in quantitative guidance, where research is starting to experience more significant growth, although these studies are still moderate on the impact of reflexive learning of cultural forces [4,22,33].
