German-language scales for spirituality at work

Abstract

ABSTRACT Although spirituality at work is increasingly raising academics’ and practioneers’ interest, to date virtually no scientific insights on effects and applications of spirituality at work in Germany are available due to lack of suitable German-language scales. We contribute to facilitation of future research by developing two culturally adapted German-language spirituality at work scales – based on the Faith at Work Scale (FAWS) and the Spirit at Work Scale (SAWS). In study 1, we evaluate the two German-language instruments, G-FAWS and G-SAWS, using explorative factor analysis with data from northern Germany (N = 148). On average, we find better scale properties of G-SAWS, and develop a five-item short version (G-S-SAWS). Study 2 (N = 179) provides additional validity analyzes. Based on Study 3 with data from all across Germany (N = 2,568), we discuss generalizability for Germany with all its spiritually heterogeneous parts.