Measuring Digital Communication and Collaboration Competencies at Work: Validation of a Short Scale

Abstract

Digital communication and collaboration competencies are needed by most white-collar workers to successfully and efficiently accomplish their job tasks. In three studies, we further developed and validated an initially developed scale (Oberländer & Bipp, 2021) measuring these competencies. In Study 1 (N1 = 117, N2 = 102), we extended the item pool with adapted versions to broaden the range of the scale and empirically selected the items for an adapted scale. In Study 2 (N = 201), we reduced the adapted item set based on a combination of indicators from Classical Test and Item Response Theory and assessed the psychometric properties of the new viable short-scale including six items. In Study 3 (N1 = 137, N2 = 209), we cross-validated the internal factor structure and provided evidence of its convergent and discriminant validity, assessing the nomological net of digital communication and collaboration competencies at work. In summary, we contribute to practice by providing a free, available, and valid short-scale to measure digital communication and collaboration competencies at work and to theory by providing a solid base for much-needed theory building and expansion in this field.