Well-Being at Work Scale: Exploratory and Confirmatory Validation in the USA ^*

Escala de Bem-Estar no Trabalho: Validações Exploratória e Confirmatória nos EUA

Escala de Bienestar en el Trabajo: Validación Exploratorio y Confirmatorio en los EEUU

Abstract

Given the lack of instruments to measure both affective and cognitive elements of well-being at work, the objective of this study is to look for evidence of validity in the US regarding the well-being at work scale, which was first validated in Brazil to measure employee well-being perceptions. Two studies using two different American samples of 809 participants in total were conducted for the exploratory and confirmatory validation of the scale. Construct validity was determined using convergent, discriminant, and nomological validity, which was assessed using a structural equation model to determine a correlation between well-being at work and human resources management practices. This research provides a comprehensive and operationally valid measure of well-being in work settings. The three-factor model can be used as a diagnostic tool for managers who wish to identify and improve the well-being of their work teams.

Keywords
emotions; factor analysis; measurement; occupational health; organizational psychology