Operationalization of

Variables
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Operational Definition of Variables



Operational Definition of a variable is a statement of
specific dimensions and elements through which a
concept will become measurable
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Operationalizing the concept of
Achievement Motivation
1. Driven by Work
2. No relaxation or deviation from work
3. Prefer to work alone
4. Prefer challenging jobs but not too much
challenging jobs
5. Prefer feedback from superiors and colleagues
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Should be quantifiable
N
ow
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Copyright 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sekaran/RESEARCH 4E
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Elements of Dimension 1
Driven By Work
Such a person will:
Be at work all the time
Be reluctant to take time off from work
Carry on even in the face of some setbacks
Ask questions about:
No. of working hours
No. of setbacks
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Elements of Dimension 2
Unable to Relax
Such a person will:
Be unwilling to relax
Ask questions:
What are your hobbies?
How often do you think about work when you are away
from work?
How do you spend your time when you are away from
work-place?
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Elements of Dimension 3
Impatient with ineffectiveness
Such a person will:
Be reluctant to work with others
Ask questions about:
Working with teams
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Elements of Dimension 4 Seeks
moderate challenges
Such a person will:
Be willing to do a challenging job
Ask questions:
What kind of jobs do you prefer? (Note: A number of
different types of jobs and their descriptions can be
presented)
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Elements of Dimension 5 Seeks
Feedback
Such a person will:
Be desiring feedback
Ask questions:
How often have you obtained feedback over the period
of last three months?
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What an operational definition is
Not
An operational definition does not describe the
correlates of the concepts
e-g, Success and performance cannot be a dimension of
achievement motivation, even though a motivated
person is likely to meet with it in large measure. Thus
achievement motivation & performance and/or success
maybe highly correlated, but we cannot measure an
individuals level of motivation through success &
performance
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RACE DISCRIMINATION?
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Dimensions of Race Discrimination
Performance Evaluations
Nature of job the individual is assigned
Extent of Authority given to the individual
How the supervisor treats the individual
The amount of job related information provided
Allocation of resources
Salary
Promotional opportunities
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Race Discrimination?
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I believe my race has (or has not) had an
influence on:
The types of jobs assigned to me (e.g. harder, dirtier, etc)
The amount of authority I am given (i.e. not enough)
My performance evaluation (e.g. being rated more critically than
others)
Salary inequalities
The amount of training that has been provided to me (not as much
as to some of the other specific races in the system)
The extent of grooming I have had for advancing in the job
Amount of resources allocated to me (compared to those of other
races)
The way I am treated by my supervisor
The amount of job related information provided to me
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LEARNING?
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Copyright 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sekaran/RESEARCH 4E
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