Leadership development program : evaluating content validity of team effectiveness assessment

Abstract

In an increasingly complex and dynamic workplace, effective leadership is pivotal to team success. Leaders face challenges such as organizational delayering, rapid technological advancements, team-based structures, and employee empowerment, necessitating adaptive leadership strategies. Leadership plays a critical role in influencing team processes, performance, and the ability to navigate dynamic environments. This thesis explores leadership assessment practices, focusing on the evaluation and content validation of the Team Effectiveness Assessment (TEA), a tool designed to identify leadership strengths and development areas within a team context. Addressing notable gaps in the literature, particularly the limited qualitative scrutiny of leadership assessment validity, this research aims to (1) determine whether TEA encompasses key leader behaviors essential for team leadership, (2) assess if the TEA fields adequately cover materials necessary for effective team leadership, and (3) evaluate the clarity and comprehensibility of TEA statements to ensure participants' understanding. Semi-structured interviews with experienced leaders, combined with Think-Aloud and Verbal Probing methods, form the basis for data collection, with thematic analysis employed to derive insights. The findings connect the TEA framework with team leadership theories and validate its content. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of leadership assessment practices and underscores the importance of qualitative methods in validating these tools, offering practical implications for improving leadership assessment and development strategies.