Values significantly determine a person’s behavior, motivation, aspirations, and relationships with others. Values and motives questionnaire (VMQ), also known as values and motives inventory (VMI), was created to measure them. The test estimates three dimensions of personal values: interpersonal, extrinsic, and intrinsic (“Values and motives questionnaire,” n.d.). As a result, it must indicate which activity the participant is more likely to give preference and invest more effort. Although values can be quite subjective, the test should ensure their full assessment.
Types of Reliability and Validity
How well a particular method works is evaluated using reliability and validity measures. Reliability proves that the result can be consistent over time or when the experiment is repeated. Values and motives questionnaire (n.d.) theoretically describes two types of reliability – stability and internal consistency but applies only the second one, also called scale homogeneity. This type of reliability determines how much each test element is associated with an expected result or contradicts other dimensions. To test it, Cronbach’s Alpha is used – a method by which the consistency of test elements is calculated. Validity measures the accuracy of the results – how they correspond to reality. The guide mentions two main areas – construct validity and criterion validity, and the latter has two additional forms, such as predictive and concurrent validity (“Values and motives questionnaire,” n.d.). For VMQ, construct validity was used to understand that the measurements obtained were meaningful, and correlated to the test target.
Reliability: Cronbach Alpha Coefficients
The Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient value indicates how reliable the scale in the test. It is expressed in decimal from 0 to 1, where 0 is not reliable at all, and 1 is completely reliable (“Cronbach’s Alpha,” 2018). In VMQ, the highest alpha in Finance and Aesthetics scales is 0.83, which can be interpreted as high and good (but not excellent). As acceptable and adequate, one can rate scales from 0.70 to 0.79: Affection and Security – 0.79, Affiliative and Altruistic – 0.74, Traditional and Ethical – 0.70. Other indicators are low and have limited use – Moral – 0.68, Independence – 0.66, Social Desirability – 0.64, Achievement – 0.53, and Infrequency – 0.52. The authors acknowledge that the indicators are not ideal and argue that some components will be changed after additional trials. Simultaneously, they are focused on the positive side – 8 scales have acceptable indicators higher than 0.70.
Sample Size and Nature of the Population
For VMQ validation, the test itself and several additional ones were performed for comparison. The VMQ sample consisted of 159 Psychology and MBA students, students and under-graduates also took part in other tests, but in a smaller number (“Values and motives questionnaire,” n.d.). These groups are quite comparable, but their composition imposes restrictions on validity. The fact that the norming population is psychologists students and the small amount of sample can negatively affect the test. Demographics are very limited, although social factors can significantly influence conclusions. Moreover, the cultural aspect was not studied, as well as people who did not receive education or who received a technical specialty. The results obtained from the monotonous group alone are not enough to confirm validity among the entire population.
The Opinion of the VMQ and Conclusion
VMQ can be useful tools for learning the personality and can benefit job seekers and employers. However, the manual on the credibility and validity of the questionnaire is not convincing enough. Although most Cronbach’s Alpha indicators are close to the applicable norm, there are still those that need work on. Moreover, validity is limited because of a small and uniform sample of the population. The questionnaire requires further verification among different population groups.
References
Cronbach’s Alpha. (2018). Statistics Solutions. Web.
Values and motives questionnaire: The technical manual. (n.d.). Psytech. Web.