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Conceptual and empirical confounds in the organizational sciences: An explication and discussion
Author(s) -
Martinko Mark J.,
Harvey Paul,
Mackey Jeremy D.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of organizational behavior
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.938
H-Index - 177
eISSN - 1099-1379
pISSN - 0894-3796
DOI - 10.1002/job.1961
Subject(s) - explication , confounding , psychology , conceptual framework , epistemology , cognitive psychology , organizational behavior , social psychology , statistics , philosophy , mathematics
Summary Confounding occurs when the definitions and measurements of constructs overlap. It is considered a fundamental flaw in both conceptualizing and testing relationships between variables. Although this logical and methodological error is well known, we argue that a significant amount of the published research and models of organizational behavior is undermined by definitional (i.e., conceptual) and subsequent measurement confounds. Throughout this article, examples of confounding are described. The article ends with a discussion of preventive measures that can be taken to reduce both the conceptual and measurement errors that result from confounding. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.