Mean ratings of items measuring Organizational Identification (OI), Environmental Responsibility (ER) and Green Human Resource Management (GHRM) defined as Eco-training and Eco-reward, in Portugal and Slovakia.
As sustainability becomes a growing concern, the contribution of employees to environmental initiatives within their organizations is crucial. Organizations are striving to enhance their environmental impact, and the role of employees in promoting and practicing environmentally friendly behaviors is more important than ever. A new adaptation and validation of a questionnaire offer a reliable way to measure these behaviors across different cultural contexts, providing valuable insights into how organizations can better support and encourage their workforce in contributing to sustainability goals.
A team of researchers has successfully adapted and validated a questionnaire measuring Organizational Citizenship Behavior towards the Environment (OCBE) for use in both Portuguese and Slovak cultural contexts. This effort was led by Dr. Candida Manuel alongside Dr. Carla Magalhães, Dr. Claudia Huber, Professor Artur Costa, and José Alves from Lusófona University, and Dr. Lukáš Smerek from Matej Bel University. Their findings are published in the journal Administrative Sciences.
The primary motivation behind this study was the growing importance of environmental performance within organizations and the need for reliable tools to measure employee behaviors that contribute to sustainability. As organizations worldwide strive to enhance their environmental impact, the role of employees in promoting and practicing environmentally friendly behaviors is crucial.
The research team employed a rigorous methodological procedure to ensure that the questionnaire was reliable and valid across different cultural contexts. The process included translation, adaptation, and validation, involving bilingual translators, expert reviews, and pre-tests to ensure the content’s relevance and clarity. The final questionnaire was tested with samples from Portugal and Slovakia, demonstrating good functional equivalence, content validity, and reliability. Dr. Manuel emphasized the significance of this study: “Our research highlights the importance of cross-cultural adaptation in creating reliable tools for measuring organizational citizenship behaviors towards the environment. This work is critical for organizations aiming to implement effective environmental sustainability practices.”
The researchers used a comprehensive approach to adapt the questionnaire, including forward and backward translations, expert committee reviews, and pretesting. The psychometric properties of the questionnaire were assessed using participants from both Portugal and Slovakia. The study found that the adapted questionnaire was valid and reliable for evaluating the impact of employee practices and organizational management in promoting environmental sustainability.
One of the significant findings of the research was the similarity in the factorial structure of OCBE between Portuguese and Slovak organizations. This similarity underscores the effectiveness of the adaptation process and highlights the universal applicability of the OCBE construct. The questionnaire revealed that employees in both countries engage in eco-helping actions and eco-civic engagement, demonstrating their commitment to environmental sustainability.
Moreover, in both countries, the mean ratings decreased in the order of Organizational Identification (OI) > Environmental Responsibility (ER) > Green Human Resource Management (GHRM), which means workers were answering more positively to questions about how they identify themselves with the organization’s values than to questions about the organization’s responsibility towards the environment and green management. These results also suggested that Portuguese employees and organizations in this study are more aware of environmental issues because Slovakia had lower ratings than Portugal. Surprisingly, this finding is not corroborated by the fact that Slovakia is currently ranked 18th, with an environmental performance index (EPI) score of 60.0, while Portugal is ranked 48th, with a 50.4 score, updated in 2022. The EPI is a crucial tool that provides a quantitative basis for assessing the environmental performance of 180 countries.
Dr. Manuel noted, “The cross-cultural adaptation process was meticulous, ensuring that the questionnaire was not only translated accurately but also culturally relevant. This approach ensures that the findings are robust and applicable in diverse cultural settings.”
The results indicated that employees in both Portugal and Slovakia perceive a strong organizational identification and engagement in environmentally responsible behaviors, despite differences in environmental management practices. This finding suggests that organizational culture and leadership play a vital role in promoting environmental behaviors among employees.
The findings have significant implications for organizations aiming to enhance their environmental performance. By understanding the factors that influence employee behaviors towards the environment, organizations can develop targeted strategies to promote sustainability. The adapted questionnaire provides a reliable tool for measuring these behaviors and can be used in future research to further explore the impact of organizational practices on environmental sustainability.
In conclusion, the cross-cultural adaptation of the OCBE questionnaire by Dr. Candida Manuel and her colleagues has provided a valuable tool for organizations seeking to measure and improve their environmental performance. This study highlights the importance of cultural adaptation in creating reliable measurement tools and underscores the universal relevance of organizational citizenship behaviors towards the environment.
Journal Reference
Manuel, Candida Duarte, Carla Rebelo Magalhães, Claudia Maria Huber, Lukáš Smerek, Artur Fernandes Costa, and José Ribeiro Alves. “Cross-Cultural Adaptation of a Questionnaire Measuring Organizational Citizenship Behavior towards the Environment.” Administrative Sciences 14 (2024): 57. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci14030057
About the Authors
Candida Duarte Manuel is an associate professor at Lusófona University in Porto (UL-CUP). She is also the director of the bachelor’s program in environmental engineering and works as a researcher. At the Faculty of Natural Sciences, Engineering, and Technologies (FCNET), she teaches engineering courses such as mathematics, statistics, analytical chemistry, and water quality and treatment. Currently, her research focuses on indoor air quality and microbiology, environmental sustainability and pedagogical practices in Higher Education.
In 2008, she completed her PhD in Engineering Sciences at the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Porto (FEUP), specializing in the physicochemical and microbiological quality of drinking water, as well as the effects of biofilms and pipeline materials. Additionally, she holds a master’s degree in Chemical Process Engineering and a degree in Chemical Engineering, both from FEUP.
Carla Marisa Rebelo de Magalhães completed her PhD in Business Sciences (Management-Human Resources) in 2009 at the University of Minho (School of Economics and Management), in partnership with the Getúlio Vargas Foundation, in Rio de Janeiro. She holds a Master’s Degree in Public Administration (with specialization in Human Resources and Marketing), since 2003, from the Brazilian School of Public and Business Administration – Getúlio Vargas Foundation (Rio de Janeiro) and a Degree in International Relations, since1997, from Fernando Pessoa University. She is an Associate Professor at Lusófona University (Faculty of Social and Business Economic Sciences) and Invited Professor equivalent to Assistant Professor at the University of Minho (School of Economics and Management). She develops her research activity at the Intrepid Lab, which was integrated as a hub of CETRAD – Center for Transdisciplinary Studies for Development.
Claudia Maria Huber has been a lecturer at the Lusófona University of Porto since 2020. Between 2013-2019 she worked as a teacher at Católica de Santa Catarina, in Joinville / Santa Catarina, Brazil. Between 2008-2011, she managed the people management area at Unimed Noroeste. From 2006-2008, she took over coordinating the Department of Personnel at the University of Cruz Alta (UNICRUZ). At the same time, she constituted a management consultancy, called “VR Consultoria Organizacional”, working in the public and private areas. With post-doctorate and doctorate in Management at the Faculty of Economics of the University of Porto (Portugal). Master in Development from the Regional University of the Northwest of the State of Rio Grande do Sul, UNIJUÍ (Brazil). Specialization in People Management from the Integrated Regional University of Alto Uruguai e das Missões, URI (Brazil), and, a degree in Economic Sciences from the University of Cruz Alta, UNICRUZ (Brazil). Research interests are related to management, particularly in people management.
Lukáš Smerek works at the Faculty of Economics at Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica, Slovakia, where he holds the positions of Associate Professor and Vice-dean for International Relations and Cooperation with Practice. He teaches subjects such as Human Resources Management and Managerial Communication in both Slovak and English.
He has participated in the completion of six national scientific projects, serving as a researcher, deputy project leader, and project leader. He currently leads the project team for the International Visegrad Fund’s grant, “Past, Present, and Future Challenges of HRM in V4 Countries.” He also participated in the national project “Universities as Engines of the Development of the Knowledge Society,” which was part of the operational program Education.
His publishing activities primarily focus on Human Resource Management. He is the co-author of four scientific monographs, two scientific papers listed in the WoS current content database, four papers in journals registered in the WoS or Scopus databases, and another 22 papers in domestic and foreign journals or proceedings. Additionally, he has published 16 papers at domestic and international scientific conferences, 8 of which are registered in the WoS or Scopus databases, as well as 3 works in professional journals both domestically and abroad. To date, more than 170 citations have been recorded for his publications, with over 100 citations registered in the WoS or Scopus citation indexes. He is an active member of several non-university domestic and international organizations such as the European Marketing and Management Association (EUMASS), the Slovak Academic Association for People Management (SAAPM), and the Association of Lecturers and Career Counselors (ALKP). He is also a regular assessor of national projects and the editor of the Journal of Human Resource Management – HR Advances and Developments.
