Development and Validation of the Holistic Cognition Scale.

Andrei Alexander Lux,Stephen Tai Theng Teo,Steven Lee Grover

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.551623

Andrei Alexander Lux, Stephen Tai Theng Teo + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.551623

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Abstract

This paper introduces a new scale to measure cognitive cultural differences, drawing on the theory of analytic versus holistic thought. Examining culture from a cognitive perspective is a challenge to traditional values-based approaches. Existing measures based on this framework are methodologically problematic and warrant renewal. This paper presents development and validation studies for a new instrument that measures analytic versus holistic cognitive tendencies at the individual level. The scale assesses four previously established dimensions: attention, causality, contradiction, and change. The present work follows well-established scale development protocols and the results show that the 16-item Holistic Cognition Scale (HCS) is a valid and reliable measure of analytic versus holistic thought. Three new studies with four unique samples (N = 41; 272; 454; and 454) provide evidence to support the content validity, reliability, and factor structure of the new instrument, as well as its convergent, discriminant, and concurrent validity against comparable constructs. Convergent validity is established against measures of compromise, intuition, complexity, and collectivism; predictive validity is established against Hofstede’s (1980) five cultural value dimensions; and discriminant validity is established using the average variance extracted from a confirmatory factor analysis. The new HCS is an improvement over previous attempts with a balanced number of forward- and reverse-scored items, superior reliability, less redundancy, and stronger factor loadings.

Highlights

Interest in cross-cultural business research has increased sharply over the last few decades (Boer et al, 2018)
The purpose of creating the Holistic Cognition Scale (HCS) in this paper is to provide a psychometrically strong scale that captures all components of the analytic versus holistic thought construct
The results of the present study indicate that the 12-item HCS is a valid and sufficiently reliable measure of analytic versus holistic thought

Summary

Introduction

Interest in cross-cultural business research has increased sharply over the last few decades (Boer et al, 2018). Cultural differences shape our values, norms, behavior, emotions, and cognition (Masuda et al, 2020), influencing our work experiences and work-related outcomes. Various motives advance cross-cultural research, including extending or challenging existing theories, testing their generalizability, developing new cultural theories and scales, comparing known effects among existing constructs, and studying multicultural interactions across contexts (for a review, see Gelfand et al, 2017). Traditional explanations for cultural differences in the management literature are based predominantly on values and focus on comparisons between countries (for a review, see Taras et al, 2016). A more contemporary approach to understanding and capturing cultural differences

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