Green human resource management: Development of a valid measurement scale

The objective of the study was to develop a valid measurement scale for green human resource management (HRM). Even though the common practices of green HRM have been presented in much of the literature, the previous studies focused only on a small number of functions in integrating environmental management with HRM. Additionally, the measurement of green HRM practices still calls for empirical validation. The two‐stage methodology of structural equation modeling in AMOS was employed for data analysis. Exploratory factor analysis revealed seven dimensions of the construct measured by 28 items. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the factor structure. The measuring instruments revealed convergent and discriminant validity. Several model fit indices indicated the model fitness. The study provided supplementary evidence on the underlying structure of the construct that can be valuable to researchers and practitioners in this area.     

Quality assurance in higher education: analysis of grades for reviewing course levels

In quality assurance, degree courses in European higher education have to demonstrate the course level by means of results. These courses produce many results, among them grades, referring to teachers’ evaluations of students’ performances, and it is our proposal to use them as an effective mean to reflect the course level. Our study examines the criteria that are needed to analyze grades as significant indicators for course levels. We considered what might constitute empirical proof of valid grades and from this analysis we established that the main proof of valid grades consists of measurements of construct validity, scale reliability, intercorrelation and face validity. The analyses delivered insights into the relationship between the proof of valid grades and elements of the curriculum. In the light of these insights we developed four characteristics as reference points for curricula realizing the course level. Following these points, we draw up a procedure to create such curricula. This procedure is explored in a study with eight bachelor degree courses. The conclusion is that the procedure traces the causes of invalid grades and confirms that valid grades are significant indicators of the course level.     

Applying structural equation modeling methodology to test validation: an example of cyberspace positive psychology scale

Although the structural equation modeling (SEM) methodology is a powerful tool for validating psychological measurements, few studies have used complete SEM-based indexes in test validation. This study developed and validated the cyberspace positive psychology scale (C-PPS) via SEM techniques. A total of 411 college students were recruited from four universities in Taiwan for the study. Hierarchical confirmatory factor analysis was used to test construct validity, and a structural model provided criterion-related validity. Reliability was reported via composite reliability. Results of the analyses show that the C-PPS demonstrated high reliability and good construct validity. Furthermore, criterion-related validity identified that although positive psychology in cyberspace and positive psychology in real life contexts are correlated, the two are also distinguishable. To conclude, the C-PPS is valid and reliable. The validation of the C-PPS indicates that college students can exhibit positive psychological traits in both the real and virtual worlds.     

Validity — the quest for reality in quantitative and qualitative research

It has been argued that fundamentally different methodological approaches have made for ‘two sociologies’. This view has obscured the fact that the problem of validity has to be tackled independently of any specific methodological premises because of the textuality of sociological data. This does not necessarily imply, however, a single, unified strategy for validity testing. In this paper, some basic theoretical presuppositions underlying the approach to validity testing in quantitative research will be contrasted with the strategies offered by Max Weber's methodological writings on the ideal type. It is argued that the use of ideal typical constructs in qualitative research (exemplified by patient's illness careers) allows systematic validity testing despite the important differences in the conceptualization of social reality which is used in quantitative research, thus serving the purpose of any empirical sociological research, that is, to gain valid insight into societies' concrete reality.     

How to examine construct validity of item banks

In this study data is brought to support an approach for assuring the content validity of item banks and for examining their construct validity. The method is an application of Guttman's concept of using mapping sentences for theory construction in the domain of “simple fraction’. The construct validity of the theory used for the creation of the item bank was tested by selecting two samples of items which are referenced in the same structuple (criterion). The Yule weak monotonicity coefficients of the items' connections were calculated and represented in two different matrices and in two different space diagrams. The results show clearly a similarity in both the structure of the space diagrams of any two parallel samples and in the partition of the points into regions, i.e., regions according to the classification of the items represented by them on the basis of the facets defined by the mapping sentences. Consequently, it may be concluded that the results support the construct validity of the theory on the basis of which the bank has been created.     

浅析公路检测实验室管理体系运行控制

对于公路检测实验室来说,检测结果的报告是我们最终产品,但数据可靠、有效的影响因素很多。为了确保报告的质量,我们就要重点的控制实验室管理体系文件中影响数据准确的众多因素。     

Re-innovation: The construct, measurement, and validation

There has been substantial research in the area of innovation, which is widely regarded as a powerful weapon to create competitive advantage. One important reason of the substantial research in innovation is the presence of valid and reliable measures of key innovation characteristics, such as radical, incremental, or disruptiveness innovation. Re-innovation, an extension of innovation, is renowned for its potential in creating competitive advantage with reduced cost and time implications. Unfortunately, very little research in re-innovation has been conducted, possibly because to date it still lacks a psychometrically valid measure. There is also a lack of research on convergent and discriminant validities of the re-innovation construct, resulting in the impossibility to discriminate re-innovation characteristics from radical or incremental innovation characteristics. The purpose of this paper is to develop a valid and reliable scale for measuring the construct of re-innovation. To test its reliability and discriminant and convergent validities, we used data collected from 294 general managers of SBUs in 89 electronics-related companies in Taiwan and performed a series of analyses. The reliability measures, exploratory factor analyses, confirmatory factor analyses, and convergent and discriminant validity tests strongly support our scale. In addition, nomological validity is demonstrated. Hence, this study distinguishes the re-innovation from radical and incremental innovation constructs. Finally, discussion, limitations, and future research are presented.     

项目组合实施精益战略的管理环境研究

本文以K公司基于项目组合实施精益战略的实践为例,采用案例研究的方法,探讨企业以项目组合管理为手段实施精益战略的管理环境构建及其组成要素。研究结果表明,对于实施精益战略的企业而言,流程体系的设计、组织结构的变革以及精益文化的塑造共同构成了管理环境构建的核心环节,三者缺一不可,互为依存。此外,在流程体系设计中要突出项目组合管理在精益战略实施中的协同性、过程性及有效性;组织结构变革要协调项目组合管理与传统职能部门管理的关系;精益文化培育则要从职能维度与组织维度向项目维度扩展。     

Imperatives of the science of operations and supply-chain management

Although knowledge in operations and supply-chain management (O&SCM) has advanced substantially during the last six decades, our community has not fully utilized the potential for radical innovations. We identify two sets of opportunities for pursuing radical innovations. First, there is an opportunity to pursue all phases of science, including exploratory and qualitative research, developing theories, causation and internal validity, and testing models and theories for external validity (the ability to generalize knowledge to other situations). This would broaden the domain covered by each research effort, minimize the bias resulting from the choice of research paradigm and research domain, to enhance external validity, and to minimize the gap between our research efforts and the real world our community seeks to reshape. Second, there is an opportunity to pursue multiple perspectives because a scientific conclusion valid for a narrow domain may prove to be partially true or even false if one obtains multiple perspectives. Multiple perspectives can be obtained by investigating different parts of the system, by employing different methods of analysis, by using different sources of data, or by using different subsets of the same data. Developing scientific knowledge requires pursuit of all phases of science and of multiple perspectives. In a separate paper, we propose and analyze ways to accomplish it.     

The Employee Engagement Scale: Initial Evidence for Construct Validity and Implications for Theory and Practice

Interest in the employee engagement construct has gained increasing attention in recent years. Measurement tools focused on nuanced areas of engagement (i.e., job engagement and organizational engagement) have been offered; however, no measure of employee engagement has been advanced despite persistent calls in the research. We present the development, method, and results of a three‐dimensional employee engagement measurement tool developed for use in the human resource and management fields of study. Across four independent studies, the employee engagement scale (EES) was found to consist of three subfactors (cognitive, emotional, and behavioral) and a higher‐order factor (employee engagement). Across a series of four studies, we explored the factor structure and reliability of the EES (Study 1), then refined the scale, confirmed the factor structure, and examined reliability and both convergent and nomological validity evidence (Study 2). Next (Study 3), we completed a final reduction in scale items and examined additional evidence of reliability and nomological validity as well as evidence of discriminant validity. Finally (Study 4), we tested for evidence of incremental validity. In the implications for theory and practice section, we discuss the importance of an employee engagement measure aligned alongside an agreed‐upon definition and framework. Limitations and future directions for research—such as the need for further psychometric testing and exploring issues of measurement invariance—are discussed. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Organizational Task Environments: An Evaluation of Convergent and Discriminant Validity*

ABSTRACT The organizational task environment (OTE) construct is evaluated using a large, independent sample. A general measurement model for three latent variables, munificence, dynamism and complexity is constructed for confirmatory factor analysis. This model is then tested for both convergent and discriminant validity using a multitrait‐multimethod matrix approach. The OTE model in this study demonstrates convergent validity, but it does not exhibit discriminant validity. The results of this study do not provide support for one of the key components of construct validity. Measurement issues are discussed, as well as the implications of this study for the organizational theory and strategic management disciplines.     

Benchmarking the fundraising performance of UK charities

• The cost of fundraising and its effectiveness are issues of increasing importance in the UK nonprofit sector. Measuring fundraising effectiveness properly is critical to organisations on two fronts. From a financial stewardship perspective, charities need to ensure that their fundraising is as efficient as possible. From a public relations perspective they need to be able to demonstrate this to donors and our other stakeholders. There are many problems to be overcome in objectively judging a charity's performance relative to other nonprofit organisations. There are significant methodological barriers to be overcome to produce valid and meaningful comparisons. The well established Fundratios study shows that it is feasible to construct a methodology for robust benchmarking underpinned by good quality data which charities can use as a tool to inform the management of their fundraising activities.

Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

论实现企业绩效管理的有效性

文章从几个方面讨论了如何实现企业绩效管理的有效性,一是营造良好的企业文化;二是确立企业战略目标并逐层分解;三是制定绩效计划并实施;四是及时公正地进行考核;五是正确运用绩效考核结果;六是配套制度体系的建设。     

An improved subordinate appraisal of bank manager's competence

The three-factor, forty-five item instrument measuring manager's competence in retail banking returns a poor comparative fit index when modelled as an orthogonal or oblique model. Revisiting the original scale development study published in 1996 with a new data set and following a revised research design yields a considerably improved model. A second-order factor, overall managerial competence, is demonstrated to capture a meaning common to the five first-order factors, namely, entrepreneurial style , interpersonal skills , intellectual capacity , participative management style and emotional maturity . The revised model with substantially improved construct validity and reconfirmed instrument reliability can now be used with more confidence by human resource managers. The revised instrument can become a diagnostic tool in identifying areas of incompetence in management, as well as an instrument of feedback to the manager from subordinates. Allowing subordinates to voice their opinions about their immediate supervisor can become a welcome addition to the practice of participative management. The emergence of interpersonal skills and participative management style as the key factors explaining overall managerial competence indicates the importance of assessing managerial candidates on these factors.     

Target costing,co-ordination and strategic cost management

During the last years issues of strategic management accounting have received widespread attention in the accounting literature. Yet the conceptual foundation of most proposals is not clear. This paper presents a theoretical analysis of one of the most prominent approaches of strategic management accounting, i.e. target costing. We analyse three distinct characteristics of this strategic management accounting tool, namely its market orientation, its use as co-ordination instrument and its interaction with other factors affecting long-term cost structure in the form of strategic learning. The analysis shows that the more ‘strategic’ dimensions are added to the problem of cost management, the less valid are ‘strategic’ management accounting proposals in terms of the usual way target costing is employed.     

How to develop a customer satisfaction scale with optimal construct validity

In this article, we investigate how to construct a customer satisfaction (CS) scale which yields optimally valid measurements of the construct of interest. For this purpose we compare three alternative methodologies for scale development and construct validation. Furthermore, we discuss a satisfaction measurement application which is consistent with Messick’s (in: Linn (ed.) Educational measurement, 1989) construct validity theory. Following the deductive design for test development and construct validation, a multi-item measure for CS with a retail bank was developed. The measure was applied in survey research ( \(N\)  = 1,689) within a Dutch retail bank. The items constituted a unidimensional scale, allowing the computation of scale scores. The tests of 11 hypotheses about scale-score characteristics demonstrated that the scale score represented the construct of CS well. Furthermore, the one-factor theory (e.g. Yi, in: Zeithaml (ed.) Review of marketing, 1990) of satisfaction/dissatisfaction was confirmed. An implication of this result is that satisfaction/dissatisfaction can be measured on one scale instead of two scales, one for satisfaction and one for dissatisfaction. The results demonstrate that the deductive design is an appropriate methodology for measure development and construct validation in applied psychological research. The article concludes that the multi-item measure is well-suited for CS measurement in retail banking and that customized satisfaction scales have advantages but also disadvantages compared to standardized scales.     

Development and Validation of an Employee Voice Strategy Scale through Four Studies in Japan

Employee voice is an important organizational behavior that affects work group performance, and many studies have explored its mechanism; nonetheless, the existing literature narrowly defines the construct and overlooks a variety of strategic approaches employees take as they engage in voice. Based on this problematization, the current research has developed and validated a scale of employee voice strategy through four studies in Japan (total N = 1,156). Employee voice strategy is defined as a set of direct and indirect communicative approaches that organizational members utilize to share ideas with intentions to exert constructive influence to their work group. Studies 1 and 2 analyzed interview narratives to develop an initial typology, which was refined in Study 3 into a six‐factor scale. Study 4 replicated it through confirmatory factor analyses. Construct validity of the scale was also examined by testing the strategy factors’ nomological network—as expected, proactive personality was positively associated with assertive strategies, while relationship maintenance goal orientation was linked to conciliatory, nonconfrontational strategies; negative emotion display showed negative associations with voice strategy use in general. These findings were discussed vis‐à‐vis culturally inclusive human resource management practices, as well as theoretical exploration of the employee voice phenomena from process‐centered perspectives. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

What's in a broken promissory obligation? Developing and testing a multiple component form measure of psychological contract breach

While the literature has suggested the possibility of breach being composed of multiple facets, no previous study has investigated this possibility empirically. This study examined the factor structure of typical component forms in order to develop a multiple component form measure of breach. Two studies were conducted. In study 1 (N = 420) multi-item measures based on causal indicators representing promissory obligations were developed for the five potential component forms (delay, magnitude, type/form, inequity and reciprocal imbalance). Exploratory factor analysis showed that the five components loaded onto one higher order factor, namely psychological contract breach suggesting that breach is composed of different aspects rather than types of breach. Confirmatory factor analysis provided further evidence for the proposed model. In addition, the model achieved high construct reliability and showed good construct, convergent, discriminant and predictive validity. Study 2 data (N = 189), used to validate study 1 results, compared the multiple-component measure with an established multiple item measure of breach (rather than a single item as in study 1) and also tested for discriminant validity with an established multiple item measure of violation. Findings replicated those in study 1. The findings have important implications for considering alternative, more comprehensive and elaborate ways of assessing breach.