The validation of a morale scale

54 Pages·02.273 MB·English

by  Brawn, Clarence Edward

THE VALIDATION
OP
A MORALE SCALE
Clarence Edward Brawn
Submitted in partial fulfillm ent
of the requirements for the degree of
MASTER OP ARTS
FACULTY OP GRADUATE STUDIES
THE UNIVERSITY OP WESTERN ONTARIO
1950
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UMI Number: EC53974
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Acknowledgment Is here made to the General
Manager, the Personnel Manager, the foremen,
supervisors, and employees of Somerville,
Limited, London, Ontario, and a ll others who
cooperated to make this investigation possible.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS i i i
ABSTRACT v
I INTRODUCTION 1
The Problem 1
The Measurement of Morale 2
Validity 7
II METHOD 14
Subjects 14
Criteria ofM orale 15
Administration of Question­
naires 16
Interviews 18
III RESULTS 20
R eliability of the Morale
Scale 20
Relationship of Morale
Scores to Outside Criteria
of Morale 20
IV SUMMARY OF RESULTS 28
V DISCUSSION OF RESULTS 29
VI CONCLUSIONS 35
BIBLIOGRAPHY 36
APPENDIX 37
VITA 41
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V.
ABSTRACT
A ten-item scale (Part II of The University
of Western Ontario Employee Opinion Survey) had
been developed by G-.H. Turner at the University
of Western Ontario, as a measure of morale.
This scale had been constructed on the basis of
a definition of morale which includes as essen­
tia l characteristics of high group morale a
high degree of personal morale, compatibility
of individual and group purposes, b elief in
the p ossib ility of attaining group objectives,
and a sense of identification with the group.
On the basis of a preliminary investigation
using as subjects m ilitary and civilian per­
sonnel of a large ordnance depot, coefficients
of relia b ility and of validity of the order of
+.90 and +.95 respectively had been reported.
The purpose of this study was to make a more
intensive investigation of the scale with
emphasis on its validity in a civilian
industrial setting.
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vi.
The morale scale was administered, to forty-
nine employees of two departments of a large
industrial plant. Average scores of these two
departments, reported to differ in morale, were
compared. In addition, morale scores were com­
pared, with a number of other criteria including
the Investigator's ratings of morale based on
interviews, supervisors' ratings of morale,
scores on scales of attitudes toward administr­
ation, supervision^ and physical working con­
ditions (parts III, IV, and V of The University
of Western Ontario Employee Opinion Survey),
scores on a mental health questionnaire, and
responses to a sociometric questionnaire.
A coefficient of relia b ility of #.81 was
found, using the sp lit-h alf method. While
some of the criteria were not significantly
related to morale as measured by the morale
scale, evidence for the valid ity of the scale
was found in a significant relationship between
the investigator's ratings of morale and morale
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v ii.
scores, and In the discovery that the five lowest
morale scores occurred in the department reported
to be lower in morale. Also, coefficients of
the order of #.60 sho'wing the interrelationship
of morale, attitudes toward administration, and
attitudes toward supervision, as measured, are
additional evidence of the validity of the
scale insofar as attitudes toward administration
and supervision are generally considered to be
important factors in determining morale. It
was concluded that, in general, the scale
measures morale as defined, and that, where
differences in morale are great enough to be
discriminated by Interviews, the valid ity of
the scale on this basis may be represented by
a coefficient of the order of #.60.
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THE VALIDATION OP A MORALE SCALE
I. INTRODUCTION
The Problem
The University of Western Ontario Employee
Opinion Survey (See Appendix A) is a questionnaire
which was devised by G.H, Turner, Department of
Psychology, University of Western Ontario, chiefly
as an aid to research on problems affecting
personnel in industry. Part II of this question­
naire contains ten m ultiple-choice items which
can be scored to yield what purports to be a
measurement of group morale, and it is the
group morale scale which is being singled out
here for special examination.
The subjects who were used in the development
of the scale were civilian employees and m ilitary
members of a large ordnance depot. Concerning the
scale its e lf, the original Investigator was able .
to provide the following information:
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2.
(X) Coefficients of r elia b ility of the scores
obtained were determined by test-retest and sp lit-
half methods and were reported to be +.92 and +.89,
respectively.
(2) As a fir st rough assessment of valid ity,
twelve cases were chosen, four with high scores,
four with average scores, and four with low scores.
The names were submitted to four supervisors for
rating on various characteristics, including morale.
The morale ratings of the four supervisors were
combined and correlated with morale scores to
obtain a coefficient of correlation of +.85.
The purpose of the present study was to make
a more thorough investigation of the valid ity of
the morale scale in a civilian industrial setting,
other than that in which preliminary work had been
carried out.
The Measurement of Morale
Since every attempt to measure implies some
view or definition of the characteristic being
measured, as well as a commitment with respect
to method, it may be well to consider the theoret­
ical and methodological basis of the particular
morale scale we are studying.
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