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Clinical simulation is a cornerstone of healthcare education, yet comparative evidence on learner perceptions of technical skills (TS) versus non-technical skills (NTS) training remains limited. This study aimed to examine Kirkpatrick Level 1 satisfaction across simulation course types and explore associations with participant characteristics. We conducted a retrospective analysis of 1806 healthcare professionals who attended 133 simulation sessions between 2024 and 2025. Participants completed a 16-item ad hoc questionnaire (Cronbach α = 0.959) covering four domains scored 1–10. Domain scores were compared between TS (n = 1224) and NTS (n = 582) courses using Welch t-tests and Cohen’s d. Spearman correlations assessed associations with age, gender, and professional category. Overall learner satisfaction was excellent (mean 9.55 ± 0.70). TS courses scored significantly higher across all domains (p < 0.001), with effect sizes ranging from small (d = 0.21–0.28) to moderate-approaching (d = 0.45) in the Simulation/Methodology domain. Item-level analysis highlighted perceived improvement in technical skills (d = 0.49) and error awareness (d = 0.43) as the most discriminating factors. Age, gender, and professional category were significantly associated with course type (all p ≤ 0.020). Both TS and NTS simulations achieve high learner satisfaction. The perceptual advantage of TS courses suggests that instructional strategies enhancing the tangibility of NTS learning outcomes are warranted to optimize learner engagement and satisfaction.
Reveré-Villarroya et al. (Thu,) studied this question.