The Study of Developing and Validating the Union Bias Scale

Abstract

Observation of different levels and types of organizational problems, such as school principals and teachers suing each other and conflicts between teachers, caused by union bias in schools in Turkey today, is the starting point of this study. This study, therefore, aimed to develop and validate a scale that helps determine union bias in schools. Participants of the study included teachers being a union member and working at a primary, middle or high school in the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 academic years in Düzce, Turkey. During the data analysis, firstly, the first data set was examined in terms of the assumptions of the factor analysis and then Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was applied. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was performed on the second data set. Convergent validity of the scale was examined with item load values, mean-variance, and composite reliability coefficients. Discriminant validity was examined by the Fornell-Lacker criteria. Also, measurement invariance in gender groups was examined. The Cronbach Alpha and combined reliability coefficients were calculated to determine the scale's reliability. The Union Bias scale consists of 27 items and six dimensions. The explained total variance was 64%. As a result of the first and second order confirmatory factor analyses, it was revealed that the six-dimensional structure predicted Union Bias and the scale's structure did not differ in gender groups. The Cronbach's alpha value was .90 and the composite reliability was .96. As a result, the structure of the Union Bias Scale was concluded to be valid and reliable.

Reasons of Social Distance among Teachers and Their Reflections on School Climate

“…Bu sosyal mesafe nedeniyle ilişkilerde, gruplar arası iletişimsizlik, ön yargılar ve kalıp yargılar öne çıkmaya başlar. Bu da okul iklimini olumsuz etkileyen birtakım sonuçlar doğurabilir (Kazak, 2021). Okul ikliminin okul etkililiği için önemi göz önüne alındığında, okul iklimini etkileyen sosyal mesafenin nedenlerinin ve okul iklimine yansımalarının araştırılmasının önemi ortaya çıkar.…”

“…Bu durum, gruplar arası sosyal mesafenin açılmasına dolayısı ile gruplar arası iletişimin aksamasına neden olur. Böyle bir ortam, olumsuz bir okul iklimine zemin hazırlar (Kazak, 2021). Okul ikliminin öğretmen ve öğrenciler üzerinde, dolayısıyla okul çıktıları üzerinde önemli etkileri göz önüne alındığında, okul iklimini etkileyen etkenlerin bilinmesi önemlidir.…”