Development and Psychometric Testing of a Total Quality Management Scale | Original Article

ABSTRACT:

The purpose of this paper is to describe the procedures followed in an instrument development and validation to measure the TQM practices in higher education institutions. The paper explores the process by which a reliable and valid questionnaire can be developed. The paper adopted the mixed methodology, qualitative and quantitative. The qualitative approach was used at the initial stage of item generation and development for the instrument while the quantitative method was predominantly used to empirically establish the psychometric properties of the instrument. The paper finds that the TQM Scale is psychometrically sound. The reliability index for all the dimensions are well above 0.75 and the various empirical analyses, providing evidence of convergent, concurrent, and discriminant validity as well as dimensionality. The paper provides detailed information on developing and validating a new measuring instrument. The method and procedure can be a good reference for researchers interested in developing measuring instruments on educational practices. The soft system methodology, intervention enhances holistic discussion in relation to the focal at the item generation phase. This allows a greater amount of creative debate resulting in a comprehensive list of indicators to be used the instrument. The final questionnaire consists of 30 items and the psychometry indicated that it is valid and reliable.