The problem of empirical redundancy of constructs in organizational research: An empirical investigation

Construct empirical redundancy may be a major problem in organizational research today. In this paper, we explain and empirically illustrate a method for investigating this potential problem. We applied the method to examine the empirical redundancy of job satisfaction (JS) and organizational commit...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Organizational behavior and human decision processes 2010-07, Vol.112 (2), p.112-125
Main Authors: Le, Huy, Schmidt, Frank L., Harter, James K., Lauver, Kristy J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Attitudes
Biological and medical sciences
Commitments
Concept Formation
Construct empirical redundancy
Construct proliferation
Construct proliferation Construct empirical redundancy Discriminant validity Job attitude Measurement error correction Disattenuation Measurement artifacts Reliability Generalizability theory Structural equation modeling
Correlation
Correlation analysis
Disattenuation
Discriminant validity
Employees
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Generalizability theory
Job attitude
Job Satisfaction
Measurement
Measurement artifacts
Measurement error correction
Negative affectivity
Occupational psychology
Organizational analysis
Organizational behavior
Organizational commitment
Organizational research
Persistence
Positive affect
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Psychometrics
Redundancy
Reliability
Structural equation modeling
Studies
Work ethic
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Summary:Construct empirical redundancy may be a major problem in organizational research today. In this paper, we explain and empirically illustrate a method for investigating this potential problem. We applied the method to examine the empirical redundancy of job satisfaction (JS) and organizational commitment (OC), two well-established organizational constructs. Analysis based on responses from a sample of 292 employees collected at two occasions showed that: (a) the construct-level correlation between JS and OC was very high (.91) and (b) both JS and OC are similarly related to positive affectivity and negative affectivity. These results suggest that the constructs may be empirically indistinguishable, despite their well-established conceptual distinction. These findings illustrate the problem of empirical redundancy of organizational constructs and provide a basis for a possible movement towards parsimony in the realm of constructs that could open the way to more rapid advances in knowledge in organizational research.
ISSN:0749-5978
1095-9920
DOI:10.1016/j.obhdp.2010.02.003