Development and Validation of Employee Trust Scale: Factor Structure, Reliability and Validity
The aim of this study was to determine the factor
structure and psychometric properties (i.e., reliability and convergent
validity) of the Employee Trust Scale, a newly created instrument by
the researchers. The Employee Trust Scale initially contained 82
items to measure employees’ trust toward their supervisors. A sample
of 818 (343 females, 449 males) employees were selected randomly
from public and private organization sectors in Kota Kinabalu,
Sabah, Malaysia. Their ages ranged from 19 to 67 years old with a
mean of 34.55 years old. Their average tenure with their current
employer was 11.2 years (s.d. = 7.5 years). The respondents were
asked to complete the Employee Trust Scale, as well as a managerial
trust questionnaire from Mishra. The exploratory factor analysis on
employees’ trust toward their supervisor’s extracted three factors,
labeled ‘trustworthiness’ (32 items), ‘position status’ (11 items) and
‘relationship’ (6 items) which accounted for 62.49% of the total
variance. Trustworthiness factors were re-categorized into three sub
factors: competency (11 items), benevolence (8 items) and integrity
(13 items). All factors and sub factors of the scales demonstrated
clear reliability with internal consistency of Cronbach’s Alpha above
.85. The convergent validity of the Scale was supported by an
expected pattern of correlations (positive and significant correlation)
between the score of all factors and sub factors of the scale and the
score on the managerial trust questionnaire, which measured the same
construct. The convergent validity of Employee Trust Scale was
further supported by the significant and positive inter-correlation
between the factors and sub factors of the scale. The results suggest
that the Employee Trust Scale is a reliable and valid measure.
However, further studies need to be carried out in other groups of
sample as to further validate the Scale.
[1] J.O. Whitney, The Trust Factor: Liberating Profits and Restoring
Corporate Vitality, New York: McGraw-Hill, 1994.
[2] R. Mayer, and Gavin, M. (2005), Trust in Management and
Performance: Who Minds the Shop, in, R.C. Mayer and J.H., Davis The
Effect of the Performance Appraisal System on Trust for Management:
A Field Quasi Experiment, Journal of Applied Psychology, 1999, 84, pp.
123–136.
[3] K. T., Dirks and D. L., Ferrin, The Role of Trust in Organizational
Settings. Organization Science, 2002, 12, pp. 450–467.
[4] R. Bies, and T., Tripp, ‘Beyond Distrust: “Getting Even” and the Need
for Revenge,’ in Trust in Organizations: Frontiers of Theory and
Research, eds. R. Kramer and T. Tyler, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage,
1996, pp. 246–260.
[5] S. L., Robinson, Trust and Breach of the Psychological Contract.
Administrative Science Quarterly, 1996, 41, pp. 574–599.
[6] J. A., Colquitt, B. A., Scott, and J. A., LePine, Trust, Trustworthiness,
and Trust Propensity: A Meta-Analytic Test of their Unique
Relationships with Risk Taking and Job Performance, Journal of
Applied Psychology, 2007, 92, pp. 909–927.
[7] D. M., Rousseau, S. B. Sitkin, R. S., Burt, and E., Camerer, Not so
Different after All: A Cross-Discipline View of Trust. Academy of
Management Review, 1998, 23, pp. 393–404.
[8] S., Aryee, P. S., Budhwar, and Z. X., Chen, Trust as a Mediator of the
Relationship between Organizational Justice and Work Outcomes: Test
of a Social Exchange Model. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 2002,
23, pp. 267–285.
[9] R., Mayer, J. H. Davis, and E. D., Schoorman, An Integrative Model of
Organizational Trust. Academy of Management Review, 1995, 20 (3),
pp. 709–734.
[10] A. C., Costa, Work Team Trust and Effectiveness. Personnel Review,
2003, 32, pp. 605-623.
[11] R., Bhattacharya, T. M., Devinney, and M. M., Pillutla, A Formal Model
of Trust Based on Outcomes, Academy of Management Review, 1998, 23
(3), pp. 459-472.
[12] R., Hardin, Trust and Trustworthiness. New York: Russell Sage
Foundation, 2002.
[13] R. J., Lewicki, D. J., McAllister, and R. J., Bies, Trust and Distrust: New
Relationships and Realities. Academy of Management Review, 1998, 23
(3), pp. 438-458.
[14] T., Yamagishi, The Structure of Trust (U. Kim, Y. Park, & S. Lee.
Trans., Translated into Korean). Seoul Kyoyook Kwahaksa, 2000.
[15] T., Yamagishi, and M. Yamagishi, Trust and Commitment in the United
States and Japan. Motivation and Emotion, 1994, 18, pp. 12916.
[16] U., Kim, and & Berry. Indigenous Psychology. (1993), Retrieved March
15, 2011, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_psychology.
[17] U., Kim, Indigenous, Cultural, and Cross-Cultural Psychology:
Theoretical, Philosophical, and Epistemological Analysis. Asian Journal
of Social Psychology, 2000, 3, pp. 265-287.
[18] Chua Bee Seok & Tan Cho Chiew. Trust, Trustworthiness and Justice
Perception toward the Head of Department. Global Journal of Arts
Humanities and Social Sciences, 2013, 1, pp. 20-29.
[19] Chua Bee Seok, Shamsul Amri Baharuddin, Rosnah Ismail, Ferlis
Bahari, Jasmine Adela Mutang, Lailawati Madlan, Asong Joseph.
Malaysian Multi-Ethnic Discrimination Scale: Preliminary Factor and
Psychometric Analysis. International Journal of Social, Education,
Economics and Management Engineering, 2014. 8(12), 3830-3835.
[20] A. K., Mishra, Organizational Responses to Crisis: The Centrality of
Trust. In R. Kramer and T. Tyler (eds.) Trust in Organizations. Newbury
Park, CA: Sage. 1996, pp. 261-287.
[21] L. J., Cronbach, Essentials of Psychological Testing (5th Ed.). New
York: Harper Collins Publishers. 1990.
[22] O., Chassany, P., Sagnier, P., Marquis, S., Fullerton, and N. Aaronson,
European Issues Quality Life a: Patient-Reported Outcomes: The
Example of Health-Related Quality of Life-A European Guidance
Document for the Improved Integration of Health-Related Quality of
Life Assessment in the Drug Regulatory Process. Drug Inf. Journal,
2002, 36, pp. 209–238.
[23] H. F., Kaiser. The Varimax Criterion for Analytic Rotation in Factor
Analysis. Psychometrika, 1958, 23, pp. 187–200.
[24] B., Thompson, Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis:
Understanding Concepts and Applications. Washington, DC: American
Psychological Association, 2004.
[25] J. D., Hair, R. E., Anderson, R. L., Tatham, and W. C. Black,
Multivariate Data Analysis. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1998.
[26] G. Hofstede, Culture’s Consequences: International Differences in Work
Related Values, Beverly Hills, CA: Sage. 1980.
[27] D. Robert, R. D. Costigan, R. C. Insinga, J. J. Berman, and S. S. Ilter,
“The Effect of Employee Trust of the Supervisor on Enterprising
Behavior: A Cross-Cultural Comparison,” Journal of Business and
Psychology, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 273-291, 2006.
[28] Y. T Wong, H. Ngo, and J. M. Wong, “Antecedents and Outcomes of
Employees’ Trust in Chinese Joint Ventures,” Asia Pacific Journal of
Management, vol. 20, pp. 481–499. 2003.
[29] Y. Han, Z. Peng, and Y. Zhu, “Supervisor–Subordinate Guanxi and
Trust in Supervisor: A Qualitative Inquiry in the People’s Republic of
China,” Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 108, pp. 313–324, 2012.
[30] Chua Bee Seok & Tan Cho Chiew. Trust, Trustworthiness and Justice
Perception toward the Head of Department. Global Journal of Arts
Humanities and Social Sciences, 2013, 1, pp. 20-29.
[1] J.O. Whitney, The Trust Factor: Liberating Profits and Restoring
Corporate Vitality, New York: McGraw-Hill, 1994.
[2] R. Mayer, and Gavin, M. (2005), Trust in Management and
Performance: Who Minds the Shop, in, R.C. Mayer and J.H., Davis The
Effect of the Performance Appraisal System on Trust for Management:
A Field Quasi Experiment, Journal of Applied Psychology, 1999, 84, pp.
123–136.
[3] K. T., Dirks and D. L., Ferrin, The Role of Trust in Organizational
Settings. Organization Science, 2002, 12, pp. 450–467.
[4] R. Bies, and T., Tripp, ‘Beyond Distrust: “Getting Even” and the Need
for Revenge,’ in Trust in Organizations: Frontiers of Theory and
Research, eds. R. Kramer and T. Tyler, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage,
1996, pp. 246–260.
[5] S. L., Robinson, Trust and Breach of the Psychological Contract.
Administrative Science Quarterly, 1996, 41, pp. 574–599.
[6] J. A., Colquitt, B. A., Scott, and J. A., LePine, Trust, Trustworthiness,
and Trust Propensity: A Meta-Analytic Test of their Unique
Relationships with Risk Taking and Job Performance, Journal of
Applied Psychology, 2007, 92, pp. 909–927.
[7] D. M., Rousseau, S. B. Sitkin, R. S., Burt, and E., Camerer, Not so
Different after All: A Cross-Discipline View of Trust. Academy of
Management Review, 1998, 23, pp. 393–404.
[8] S., Aryee, P. S., Budhwar, and Z. X., Chen, Trust as a Mediator of the
Relationship between Organizational Justice and Work Outcomes: Test
of a Social Exchange Model. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 2002,
23, pp. 267–285.
[9] R., Mayer, J. H. Davis, and E. D., Schoorman, An Integrative Model of
Organizational Trust. Academy of Management Review, 1995, 20 (3),
pp. 709–734.
[10] A. C., Costa, Work Team Trust and Effectiveness. Personnel Review,
2003, 32, pp. 605-623.
[11] R., Bhattacharya, T. M., Devinney, and M. M., Pillutla, A Formal Model
of Trust Based on Outcomes, Academy of Management Review, 1998, 23
(3), pp. 459-472.
[12] R., Hardin, Trust and Trustworthiness. New York: Russell Sage
Foundation, 2002.
[13] R. J., Lewicki, D. J., McAllister, and R. J., Bies, Trust and Distrust: New
Relationships and Realities. Academy of Management Review, 1998, 23
(3), pp. 438-458.
[14] T., Yamagishi, The Structure of Trust (U. Kim, Y. Park, & S. Lee.
Trans., Translated into Korean). Seoul Kyoyook Kwahaksa, 2000.
[15] T., Yamagishi, and M. Yamagishi, Trust and Commitment in the United
States and Japan. Motivation and Emotion, 1994, 18, pp. 12916.
[16] U., Kim, and & Berry. Indigenous Psychology. (1993), Retrieved March
15, 2011, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_psychology.
[17] U., Kim, Indigenous, Cultural, and Cross-Cultural Psychology:
Theoretical, Philosophical, and Epistemological Analysis. Asian Journal
of Social Psychology, 2000, 3, pp. 265-287.
[18] Chua Bee Seok & Tan Cho Chiew. Trust, Trustworthiness and Justice
Perception toward the Head of Department. Global Journal of Arts
Humanities and Social Sciences, 2013, 1, pp. 20-29.
[19] Chua Bee Seok, Shamsul Amri Baharuddin, Rosnah Ismail, Ferlis
Bahari, Jasmine Adela Mutang, Lailawati Madlan, Asong Joseph.
Malaysian Multi-Ethnic Discrimination Scale: Preliminary Factor and
Psychometric Analysis. International Journal of Social, Education,
Economics and Management Engineering, 2014. 8(12), 3830-3835.
[20] A. K., Mishra, Organizational Responses to Crisis: The Centrality of
Trust. In R. Kramer and T. Tyler (eds.) Trust in Organizations. Newbury
Park, CA: Sage. 1996, pp. 261-287.
[21] L. J., Cronbach, Essentials of Psychological Testing (5th Ed.). New
York: Harper Collins Publishers. 1990.
[22] O., Chassany, P., Sagnier, P., Marquis, S., Fullerton, and N. Aaronson,
European Issues Quality Life a: Patient-Reported Outcomes: The
Example of Health-Related Quality of Life-A European Guidance
Document for the Improved Integration of Health-Related Quality of
Life Assessment in the Drug Regulatory Process. Drug Inf. Journal,
2002, 36, pp. 209–238.
[23] H. F., Kaiser. The Varimax Criterion for Analytic Rotation in Factor
Analysis. Psychometrika, 1958, 23, pp. 187–200.
[24] B., Thompson, Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis:
Understanding Concepts and Applications. Washington, DC: American
Psychological Association, 2004.
[25] J. D., Hair, R. E., Anderson, R. L., Tatham, and W. C. Black,
Multivariate Data Analysis. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1998.
[26] G. Hofstede, Culture’s Consequences: International Differences in Work
Related Values, Beverly Hills, CA: Sage. 1980.
[27] D. Robert, R. D. Costigan, R. C. Insinga, J. J. Berman, and S. S. Ilter,
“The Effect of Employee Trust of the Supervisor on Enterprising
Behavior: A Cross-Cultural Comparison,” Journal of Business and
Psychology, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 273-291, 2006.
[28] Y. T Wong, H. Ngo, and J. M. Wong, “Antecedents and Outcomes of
Employees’ Trust in Chinese Joint Ventures,” Asia Pacific Journal of
Management, vol. 20, pp. 481–499. 2003.
[29] Y. Han, Z. Peng, and Y. Zhu, “Supervisor–Subordinate Guanxi and
Trust in Supervisor: A Qualitative Inquiry in the People’s Republic of
China,” Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 108, pp. 313–324, 2012.
[30] Chua Bee Seok & Tan Cho Chiew. Trust, Trustworthiness and Justice
Perception toward the Head of Department. Global Journal of Arts
Humanities and Social Sciences, 2013, 1, pp. 20-29.
@article{"International Journal of Business, Human and Social Sciences:71198", author = "Chua Bee Seok and Getrude Cosmas and Jasmine Adela Mutang and Shazia Iqbal Hashmi", title = "Development and Validation of Employee Trust Scale: Factor Structure, Reliability and Validity", abstract = "The aim of this study was to determine the factor
structure and psychometric properties (i.e., reliability and convergent
validity) of the Employee Trust Scale, a newly created instrument by
the researchers. The Employee Trust Scale initially contained 82
items to measure employees’ trust toward their supervisors. A sample
of 818 (343 females, 449 males) employees were selected randomly
from public and private organization sectors in Kota Kinabalu,
Sabah, Malaysia. Their ages ranged from 19 to 67 years old with a
mean of 34.55 years old. Their average tenure with their current
employer was 11.2 years (s.d. = 7.5 years). The respondents were
asked to complete the Employee Trust Scale, as well as a managerial
trust questionnaire from Mishra. The exploratory factor analysis on
employees’ trust toward their supervisor’s extracted three factors,
labeled ‘trustworthiness’ (32 items), ‘position status’ (11 items) and
‘relationship’ (6 items) which accounted for 62.49% of the total
variance. Trustworthiness factors were re-categorized into three sub
factors: competency (11 items), benevolence (8 items) and integrity
(13 items). All factors and sub factors of the scales demonstrated
clear reliability with internal consistency of Cronbach’s Alpha above
.85. The convergent validity of the Scale was supported by an
expected pattern of correlations (positive and significant correlation)
between the score of all factors and sub factors of the scale and the
score on the managerial trust questionnaire, which measured the same
construct. The convergent validity of Employee Trust Scale was
further supported by the significant and positive inter-correlation
between the factors and sub factors of the scale. The results suggest
that the Employee Trust Scale is a reliable and valid measure.
However, further studies need to be carried out in other groups of
sample as to further validate the Scale.", keywords = "Employees trust scale, position status, psychometric
properties, relationship, trustworthiness.", volume = "9", number = "8", pages = "2916-6", }
