The Feedback Environment Scale: Construct Definition, Measurement, and Validation

Abstract

Managers are increasingly being held accountable for providing resources that support employee development, particularly in the form of feedback and coaching. To support managers as trainers and coaches, organizations must provide managers with the tools they need to succeed in this area. This article presents a new tool to assist in the diagnosis and training of managers in the area of feedback and coaching: the Feedback Environment Scale. This article also discusses the theoretically based definition of this new construct and the development and validation evidence for the scale that measures this construct. Confirmatory factor analyses supported the a priori measurement model, and assessment of relationships proposed in a preliminary nomological network provide initial support for the construct validity of the scale. Results also show evidence for the internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and discriminant validity of the facet scores of the Feedback Environment Scale.