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Paternalistic Leadership (Cheng, Chou, Wu, Huang & Farh)

LeadershipReliability: Authoritarian alpha 0.83; Benevolent alpha 0.91; Moral alpha 0.943 sample items

About this scale

A 32-item measure of three dimensions of paternalistic leadership: authoritarianism (strict discipline), benevolence (individualized concern), and moral leadership (personal virtue). Especially relevant in Chinese, MENA, and South-Asian leadership research.

Sample item(s)

“My supervisor scolds us when we cannot accomplish our tasks. (authoritarian)”
“My supervisor takes good care of my family members as well. (benevolent)”
“My supervisor is selfless. (moral)”

Reliability

Reported internal consistency: Authoritarian alpha 0.83; Benevolent alpha 0.91; Moral alpha 0.94. As a rule of thumb, Cronbach’s α ≥ .70 is considered acceptable, ≥ .80 good, and ≥ .90 excellent for established measures.

Notes

Highly relevant in Chinese, Indian, MENA contexts where paternalistic norms are salient.

Source & citation

Cheng, B.-S., Chou, L.-F., Wu, T.-Y., Huang, M.-P., & Farh, J.-L. (2004): Paternalistic leadership and subordinate responses: Establishing a leadership model in Chinese organizations. Asian Journal of Social Psychology, Vol. 7, No. 1, pp. 89–117.

Cheng et al. (2004): Paternalistic leadership scale. AJSP, 7(1), 89–117.

Source. Scale details are summarised from the publication cited above. Always consult the original source for the full item set, scoring, and permission to use.

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