Test of the Construct and Criteria Validity of a German Measure of Organizational Justice

Abstract

Organizational justice is a well-known and increasingly often measured construct in work-related psychological research, for which, however, different kinds of measures are used. Colquitt (2001 ) developed a four-dimensional measure of organizational justice to allow for the comparison of different studies. Two studies provide evidence for the construct (Study 1) and criteria validity (Study 2) of the German version of the Colquitt measure with regard to perceived supervisor behavior as well as employees’ attitudes and intentions. In Study 1, the measure demonstrated construct validity using a German sample of employees (N = 227) from different companies: Each dimension correlated differently with work-related dimension of supervisor behavior. To demonstrate criteria validity in Study 2 (N = 315 employees), the justice measure predicted different, theoretically linked work-related employee behaviors or attitudes (i.e., intentions to leave, job satisfaction, job stress, individual organizational citizenship behavior). Results are discussed with regard to theoretical and practical implications, intercultural differences, and future research.