Development and validation of work ethic instrument to measure Chinese people's work‐related values and attitudes

• Author: Jessica Li,Yarong Wang,Amir Hedayati‐Mehdiabadi,Xue Yang,Mei‐Tzu Huang
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/hrdq.21374
• Date: 01 February 2020
• Published date: 01 February 2020

QUANTITATIVE STUDY

Development and validation of work ethic

instrument to measure Chinese people's work-

related values and attitudes

Jessica Li

1

| Mei-Tzu Huang

2

| Amir Hedayati-Mehdiabadi

3

|

Yarong Wang

4

| Xue Yang

1

1

Department of Education Policy,

Organization & Leadership, University of

Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Champaign,

Illinois

2

Department of Business Administration,

National Taiwan University of Science and

Technology, Taipei, Taiwan

3

Department of Organization, Information

and Learning Sciences, University of New

Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico

4

Department of Human Resource

ManagementInner, Inner Mongolia University

of Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia,

China

Correspondence

Jessica Li, University of Illinois at Urbana

Champaign, 1310 S. Sixth Street, Champaign,

IL 61820.

Email: jli2011@illinois.edu

Abstract

Work ethic, a construct of work-related values and atti-

tudes, is believed to have a direct impact on how people

approach work, work behavior, and on-the-job perfor-

mance. When people experience social transformations,

their work-related values and attitudes change. The Chinese

society has experienced significant transformations over an

extended period of economic reform. This study is designed

to develop and validate a work ethic instrument that can be

used to measure current Chinese people's work-related

values and attitudes. To be sensitive to the Chinese context,

this study follows a process of systematic cross-context

theory borrowing: borrowing a validated western work

ethic instrument developed by Miller, Woehr, and Hudspeth

(2002) and incorporating the findings of two qualitative

studies on Chinese work ethic profile conducted previously

in China to initiate the instrument development. This paper

presents the research process including the data collection,

instrument development, and instrument validation. A

multigenerational and multiregional sample of 928 was used

to conduct the study. The findings suggested an eight-

dimensional profile of Chinese workers' work ethic with a

robust model fit. The eight dimensions are the concept of

time, work centrality, morality, leisure, delay of gratification,

hard work, group dynamics, and commitment to education.

Implications for the field of human resource development,

DOI: 10.1002/hrdq.21374

© 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Human Resource Development Quarterly. 2020;31:49–73. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/hrdq 49

limitations of the study, and calls for future research are

also presented.

KEYWORDS

China, Chinese work ethic profile, economic reform, factor

analysis, instrument development, multidimensional work ethic

profile (MWEP), work ethic, work-related values and attitudes

1|INTRODUCTION

Values are the guiding principles of people's lives (Schwartz, 2006). Work ethic, as a construct of work-related values

and attitudes, guides employees' work lives and is believed to have a direct impact on employees' on-the-job behav-

iors, such as organizational citizenship, quality of work, productivity, and job performance (Park & Hill, 2017). Work

ethic has been argued to be one of the main competencies that employees must possess or develop in the 21st-

century world of work (Rojewski & Hill, 2017). Scholars have credited work ethic as the drivers of economic develop-

ment in both Western and Eastern societies (i.e., Lim & Lay, 2003; Woehr, Arciniega, & Lim, 2007). As argued by Hill

and Petty (1995), while work ethic has important implications for performance on the job, not sufficient attention

has been paid to this concept in educational and work settings. Human resource development (HRD) professionals

are interested in understanding what motivates the employees to design and develop appropriate interventions to

improve the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of the employees to achieve desired job performance. Hence, having a

validated work ethic instrument to investigate employees' work-related values and attitudes is important for the field

of HRD.

A review of literature on work ethic reveals that work ethic is a well-established concept in the West, but very

limited publications can be found on the contemporary Chinese work ethic profile. The current publications on Chi-

nese work ethic are either taking a traditional approach which relies heavily on the Confucian philosophy

(i.e., Cheng, 1998; Zhang & Liu, 2013) or are borrowing a western work ethic framework as a theoretical foundation

without taking necessary measures to conform local culture influence (i.e., Wang, Guo, & Ling, 2007; Wu & Li, 2010).

While the Confucian philosophy continues to influence the Chinese people in significant ways, the recent dra-

matic changes that China has experienced should be taken into consideration when conducting workethic research.

When people experience social transformations, their work-related values and attitudes change, because people

want to acclimate to the social, political, and economic circumstances of the larger environment (Hitlin & Piliavin,

2004; Schwartz & Bardi, 1997). The recent changes in China are signified by two main events: (a) the establishment

of a communist government in 1949 which introduced a communist value system into the country and (b) the eco-

nomic reform and open-door policy initiated in 1979 which allowed the Western capitalist market value to penetrate

the country. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a new instrument that captures the impact of these changes on

contemporary Chinese people's work-related values and attitudes.

Hansen and Brooks (1994, p. 70) who reviewed cross-cultural research in HRD, stated that “cultural factors influ-

ence management models, thinking styles, career expectations, organizational culture, change efforts, and instruc-

tional needs and development.”According to Plakhotnik (2005, p. 1333), dealing with work ethic can be a great

challenge for HRD practitioners, because it has deep cultural roots and also “U.S.-based models of employee

accountability or organizational commitment may not work”in other countries. We reckon that Chinese-specific con-

textual influence is an essential consideration in describing the Chinese work ethic. Therefore, this study adopted a

process of systematic cross-context theory borrowing with culture sensitivity. To develop an in-depth understanding

of the currently held work-related values and attitudes among Chinese workers, two qualitative interview studies

50 LI ET AL.