Cognitive Styles in an International Perspective: Cross-Validation of the Cognitive Style Indicator (CoSI)

Abstract

This study examines the cross-cultural validity of the Cognitive Style Indicator (CoSI). Measurement equivalence tests were performed on data collected from a Belgian (n = 300) and a South African (n = 246) sample of students and employees. Confirmatory factor analyses within each sample showed the best fit to the data for a three-factor model underlying the CoSI. Measurement invariance tests, using multigroup confirmatory factor analysis, indicated that the relationships among the scales showed equivalence across cultures. Although the study is an important first step toward the cross-validation of the CoSI, further research in other international samples is particularly needed to strengthen these results.

Does cognitive style diversity affect performance in dyadic student teams?

“…Our research is an illustration of the importance of a multidimensional model of cognitive styles, whereby the analytic dimension is split into a knowing and a planning style, which clearly have different effects. This supports the multifactoriality of the CoSI (Cools, De Pauw, et al, 2009;Cools & Van den Broeck, 2007).…”

“…A possible explanation could be found in the "process versus outcome focus" described by Woolley (2009). People with a high score on the planning style variable typically have a high degree of process focus, which means they identify the specific tasks that need to be completed, the resources available for doing so, and the coordination of tasks and resources among team members and over time (Cools, De Pauw, et al, 2009;Cools & Van den Broeck, 2007;Woolley, 2009). However, being process focused is often associated with being less flexible in thinking about alternative models for carrying out work (Vallacher & Wegner, 1989) and concentrating more on the final outcome than on the means through which it should be achieved (Aggarwal & Woolley, 2013).…”

“…students, managers, employees, entrepreneurs;Cools, De Pauw, & Vanderheyden, 2009; Cools & Van den Broeck, 2008a,b;Cools, Van den Broeck, & Bouckenooghe, 2009…”

Cognitive styles, user acceptance and commitment to strategic plans in public organizations: an empirical analysis

“…We chose CoSI because recent developments in the cognitive styles field argue that there are more dimensions than the historically used two cognitive styles (intuitive versus analytical) and the CoSI indicator is recommended as a state-of-the-art three-dimensional measure which addresses these developments (Armstrong, Cools, and Sadler-Smith 2012). Moreover, strong support has been found for CoSI's construct and predictive validity in different western and non-western samples (Armstrong, Cools, and Sadler-Smith 2012;Cools, De Pauw, and Vanderheyden 2011;Cools and Van den Broeck 2007). An overview of the included items can be consulted in the Supplemental data, Table C.…”

The onion model: Myth or reality in the field of individual differences psychology?

“…Individuals with a creating style search for renewal; have a strong imagination; like to work in a flexible way; prefer creative and unconventional ways of decision making, and make decisions based on intuition ('gutfeel'). As previous studies in diverse Western and non-Western samples (e.g., students, managers, employees, entrepreneurs) found strong support for the construct validity and predictive validity of this new threedimensional model (Cools, De Pauw, & Vanderheyden, 2011;Cools & Van den Broeck, 2007, 2008a, 2008bCools, Van den Broeck, & Bouckenooghe, 2009), we chose to use this framework in current research.…”