The Meaning and Measurement of Integrity in New Zealand Business People

Abstract

Research on what is meant by integrity in New Zealand and how to effectively measure this is virtually non-existent. This is despite a dictate from the Public Sector Standards Board that 'integrity' is to be a core value of all public servants. This thesis addresses this deficiency by identifying the components of integrity when the term is applied in a business sense, and designing an instrument to measure integrity in individuals. The research is carried out in a series of discrete studies. First, repertory grid interviews and questionnaires were administered to 47 managers in 16 organisations. They described 248 behaviours that are apparent in business associates with, or without, integrity. These behaviours were used to construct a series of questionnaires, which related to high, medium or low integrity. The questionnaires were to gain a wider consensus on which behaviours were associated with integrity. 521 individuals from 118 organisations completed these questionnaires. Those behaviours with a high degree of agreement on their relationship to integrity were used to construct an 81-item questionnaire. 497 people from over 124 organisations completed the questionnaire to state whether or not the behaviours described were like or not like their own and the datum was subjected to factor analysis. The questionnaire revealed a ten-factor integrity model. Following further item deselection a final questionnaire with 53 items was derived. This questionnaire had a six-factor model with a main factor of Dependability, making up 29.8% of the variance. This factor was very similar to the factor of conscientiousness, which is one of the Big Five Personality Factors. Further studies were carried out to establish the test-retest reliability and internal consistency of the instrument and to provide concurrent validity data. The implications and limitations of these findings are discussed along with suggestions for a longitudinal validation study to establish the predictive validity of the instrument.