INTERNAL FACTORS DRIVING LEARNING OUTCOMES IN BUSINESS EDUCATION SCALE: EXPLORATORY FACTOR ANALYSIS

Abstract

Understanding the internal factors that influence students’ learning outcomes in business education is crucial and should be prioritized from the secondary school level to ensure the development of high-quality human resources. Currently, there are not many reliable ways to measure this. To address this need, the study aims to investigate the internal factors that affect students’ learning performance in business subjects and to assess the construct validity and reliability of the measurement instruments using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Cronbach’s Alpha. Data were collected from 126 secondary school students in Miri, Sarawak, Malaysia, to refine and validate the measurement scale. Accordingly, the EFA results revealed well-defined underlying factors, while Cronbach’s Alpha values indicated acceptable reliability levels, confirming the validity and consistency of the constructs. Overall, these findings provide a foundation for further empirical studies on the influence of these factors on students’ learning outcomes in business education.