The Adaptation of the Motivation to Lead Instrument to the Estonian Military Context

Abstract

Purpose: This study is a contribution to the validation of the Motivation to Lead (MTL) scale proposed by Chan and Drasgow (2001) in order to measure three types of motivation to be a leader: affective, social-normative and calculative. This research examines the psychometrical properties of the MTL scale in the Estonian context. Methodology:The sample of 517 military and non-military individuals from the Estonian Defence Forces, Estonian Police and students from Tallinn University participated in the study. The original MTL scale was expanded by with the addition of ideological and patriotic dimensions proposed by Amit and colleagues (2007). The factorial structure of the MTL Scale was analysed by using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis (respectively N = 170 and N = 347). Findings:The results confirmed that both three-and five-component MTL scales are applicable in the Estonian context; the pool of 35 items was reduced into 25 items with good internal reliability. Moreover, the results showed correlations between leadership self-efficacy and MTL components, and differences between leaders' and non-leaders' MTL. The results indicate that the MTL scale can be a reliable and useful instrument to measure leadership motivation in the Estonian military context. Originality:This study is the first to adapt the MTL scale to the Estonian context. In addition, it examines the validity of ideological and patriotic MTL as part of the general MTL construct outside of the Israeli samples.

Motivation to lead in Japan: validation of a Japanese version of the motivation to lead scale

“…Specifically, it was examined whether he three-factor structure of the proposed MTL scale was consistent with that in previous studies (i.e., AI-MTL, NC-MTL, and SN-MTL; Chan and Drasgow, 2001). Since previous studies present inconsistent results concerning the original version's factor structure (Bobbio and Rattazzi, 2006;Amit et al, 2007;Kasemaa, 2016), this study also investigated alternative models. The following goodness-of-fit indices were adopted: comparative fit index (CFI), root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA), and standardized root mean square residual (SRMR).…”

“…Previous studies have indicated that collectivism is a cultural characteristic of Japan (Bergiel et al, 2012). Given that NC-MTL is positively correlated with collectivist values rather than with individualistic values (Chan and Drasgow, 2001;Kasemaa, 2016;Badura et al, 2020), Japan's highly collectivist culture may influence NC-MTL compared with countries with more individualistic cultures.…”

“…Motivation has been recognized as an essential element in determining whether an employee would pursue a particular organizational role when carrying out job obligations (Kanfer et al, 2017;Badura et al, 2020). Therefore, understanding the motivation for a leadership role is necessary to optimize the return on the huge investment in leadership development (Stiehl et al, 2015;Kasemaa, 2016;Badura et al, 2020). Consequently, there is growing emphasis on understanding the motivational mechanisms that drive the emergence and development of leadership (Felfe and Schyns, 2014).…”

“…Since the original version of the MTL scale was proposed (Chan and Drasgow, 2001), its adaptability has been examined in various cultural contexts such as in Italy (Bobbio and Rattazzi, 2006), Israel (Amit et al, 2007), and Estonia (Kasemaa, 2016). In the study conducted in Italy, Bobbio and Rattazzi (2006) translated the original version of the MTL scale, consisting of 27 items, into Italian and evaluated it on 624 undergraduate and post-degree specialization students.…”

“…Amit et al (2007), who studied the Israeli Defense Forces, added two subscales: patriotic and ideological. Similarly, Kasemaa (2016) measured MTL among Estonian military and police officers, expanding the traditional three dimensions to include ideological and patriotic components, resulting in a 25-item, five-factor model. Therefore, the social and cultural dependence of the MTL scale suggests that it may not be universally applicable.…”