Investigating the Psychometric Properties of Decent Work Questionnaire

Abedini Velamdehy, Raziyeh

doi:10.22055/jiops.2021.37472.1225

Document Type : Research Article

Author

Raziyeh Abedini Velamdehy

1. PhD Student of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran

https://doi.org/10.22055/jiops.2021.37472.1225

Abstract

Introduction
Given increasing evidence that challenges the implicit autonomy assumption in the field of vocational psychology (that all people have the autonomy to make career choices), the psychology of working theory (PWT) expands the current vocational research and practice by taking an inclusive consideration that people are facing contextual constraints and thus may not be able to make free choices in their career. The purpose of this study was to investigat the psychometric properties of Decent Work Scale in employees of one hospital in Mashhad city.

Method
The sample consisted of 180 employees who were selected by census method, who completed Decent Work (2017), Social Support (1998), Adjustment (1961), and Job Satisfaction questionnaires were completed.

Results
Evaluation of internal consistency of questionnaire by Cronbach's alpha method and correlation of each question with total score, showed that questions of this scale have acceptable internal consistency. In order to investigate the validity of the Decent Work Scale, several methods were used. The exploratory factor analysis with principal components method and varimax rotation, as expected, showed that 15 items of the Decent Work Scale were loaded on five factors of individually directed safe working conditions, access to healthcare, adequate compensation, free time, and complemental values. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that 3 items of this scale significantly loaded on the five-factorial and the five-factorial model has a better fit with the data than the one-factorial model. The results of the convergent validity showed there is a positive correlation between the total score of the scale and the scores of safe working conditions, access to healthcare, adequate compensation, free time, and complemental values subscales. Also, the correlation of Decent Work Scale with job satisfaction (0.59), job adjustment (0.26) and social support (0.30) has been calculated.

Discussion
It should be noted that the Decent Work Scale in the workplace can better predict the five factors of safe working conditions, access to healthcare, adequate compensation, free time and rest, and organizational value. Overally, the study findings showed that this scale, similarity to the West research, is composed of five factors and has acceptable validity and reliability. Consequently, it can be applied to measure this construct in Iranian employees.

Keywords

References

Aghamohammadian Sharbaf, H. R. (1995). Evaluation of the effectiveness of two group therapy methods with psychological and cognitive analysis approach on increasing the level of adaptation. MA. thesis of psychology, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran. (Persian)

Arjmandrad, I., & Shokrkon, H. (2020). The Relationship of Social Capital and Quality of Work Life with Job Performance and Work Engagement. Journal of Industrial and Organizational Psychology Studies, 7(2), 225-240. (Persian)

Bell, C. G., Fujisaki, H., Heinz, J. M., Stevens, K. N., & House, A. S. (1961). Reduction of speech spectra by analysis‐by‐synthesis techniques. The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 33(12), 1725-1736.

Bentler, P. M. (1990). Comparative fit indexes in structural models. Psychological bulletin, 107(2), 238.

Blackett, A. (2018). Regulatory Innovation on Decent Work for Domestic Workers in the Light of International Labour Organization Convention No. 189. International Journal of Comparative Labour Law, 34(2), 141-148.

Blustein, D. L. (2001). Extending the reach of vocational psychology: Toward an inclusive and integrative psychology of working. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 59(2), 171-182.

Blustein, D. L., Kenna, A. C., Gill, N., & DeVoy, J. E. (2008). The psychology of working: A new framework for counseling practice and public policy. The Career Development Quarterly, 56(4), 294-308.

Blustein, D. L., Masdonati, J., & Rossier, J. (2017). Psychology and the international labor organization: The role of psychology in the decent work agenda. Paris: International Labor Organization.

Blustein, D. L., McWhirter, E. H., & Perry, J. C. (2005). An emancipatory communitarian approach to vocational development theory, research, and practice. The Counseling Psychologist, 33(2), 141-179.

Blustein, D. L., Olle, C., Connors-Kellgren, A., & Diamonti, A. J. (2016). Decent work: A psychological perspective. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 407.

Blustein, D. L., Schultheiss, D. E. P., & Flum, H. (2004). Toward a relational perspective of the psychology of careers and working: A social constructionist analysis. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 64(3), 423-440.

Browne, M. W., & Cudeck, R. (1992). Alternative ways of assessing model fit. Sociological Methods & Research, 21(2), 230-258.

Bruwer, B., Emsley, R., Kidd, M., Lochner, C., & Seedat, S. (2008). Psychometric properties of the Multidimensional Scale of perceived social support in youth. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 49(2), 195-201.

Campbell, J. D., Trapnell, P. D., Heine, S. J., Katz, I. M., Lavallee, L. F., & Lehman, D. R. (1996). Self-concept clarity: Measurement, personality correlates, and cultural boundaries. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 70(1), 141-156.

Colquitt, J. A., Conlon, D. E., Wesson, M. J., Porter, C. O., & Ng, K. Y. (2001). Justice at the millennium: a meta-analytic review of 25 years of organizational justice research. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86(3), 425-445.

Corsi, A., Palmisano, B., Tratwal, J., Riminucci, M., & Naveiras, O. (2019). Brief report from the 3rd international meeting on bone marrow adiposity (BMA 2017). Frontiers in Endocrinology, 10, 336.

Cram, W. A., Proudfoot, J. G., & D’arcy, J. (2017). Organizational information security policies: a review and research framework. European Journal of Information Systems, 26(6), 605-641.

Dodd, V., Hooley, T., & Burke, C. (2019). Decent work in the UK: Context, conceptualization, and assessment. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 112, 270-281.

Dorling, D., & Fairbairn, D. (2013). Mapping: Ways of representing the world. New York, NY: Routledge.

Dorling, D., & Jones, O. P. (2017). The equality effect: Improving life for everyone. Oxford: New Internationalist Publications Limited.

Duffy, R. D., Allan, B. A., England, J. W., Blustein, D. L., Autin, K. L., Douglass, R. P., ... & Santos, E. J. (2017). The development and initial validation of the Decent Work Scale. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 64(2), 206-221.

Duffy, R. D., Blustein, D. L., Diemer, M. A., & Autin, K. L. (2016). The psychology of working theory. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 63(2), 127-148.

Ford, J., & Collinson, D. (2011). In search of the perfect manager? Work-life balance and managerial work. Work, Employment and Society, 25(2), 257-273.

Fouad, N. A., Kantamneni, N., Smothers, M. K., Chen, Y. L., Fitzpatrick, M., & Terry, S. (2008). Asian American career development: A qualitative analysis. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 72(1), 43-59.

Guichard, J. (2009). Self-constructing. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 75(3), 251-258.

Jamea, N., & Rabbani, Z. (2020). The moderating role of job stress in the relationship between safety climate and work-related accidents. Journal of Industrial and Organizational Psychology Studies, 7(2), 241-258.

Jin, L. (2016). Migration, relative deprivation, and psychological well-being in China. American Behavioral Scientist, 60(5-6), 750-770.

McGinnity, F., & Calvert, E. (2009). Work-life conflict and social inequality in Western Europe. Social Indicators Research, 93(3), 489-508.

Salimi, A., Jokar, B., & Nickpour, R. (2009). Internet relationships in life: Exploring the role of perceptions of social support and loneliness in internet use. Psychological Studies, 5(3), 81-102.

Taylor, E. W. (2017). Transformative learning theory. Transformative learning meets bildung. Armando: Brill Sense.

Tokar, D. M., & Kaut, K. P. (2018). Predictors of decent work among workers with Chiari malformation: An empirical test of the psychology of working theory. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 106(11), 126-137.

Tsui, A. S., Egan, T. D., & O'Reilly III, C. A. (1992). Being different: Relational demography and organizational attachment. Administrative Science Quarterly, 37(4), 549-579.

Wang, D., Jia, Y., Hou, Z. J., Xu, H., Zhang, H., & Guo, X. L. (2019). A test of psychology of working theory among Chinese urban workers: Examining predictors and outcomes of decent work. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 115, 103325.

Zeman, J., & Shipman, K. (1997). Social-contextual influences on expectancies for managing anger and sadness: the transition from middle childhood to adolescence. Developmental Psychology, 33(6), 917-924.

Zhang, S., Wang, E., & Chen, Y. (2011). Relative deprivation based on occupation: An effective predictor of Chinese life satisfaction. Asian Journal of Social Psychology, 14(2), 148-158.

Investigating the Psychometric Properties of Decent Work Questionnaire

References

References

Volume 8, Issue 1September 2021Pages 1-26

Volume 8, Issue 1
September 2021
Pages 1-26