Purpose of the Questionnaire

The Empowering Leadership Questionnaire (ELQ) aims to assess leadership behaviors that empower employees, focusing on key areas such as autonomy, professional development, active participation in decision-making, and recognition of achievements. This tool is intended for employees regardless of age or hierarchical level and is widely used by organizations aiming to enhance productivity and employee engagement.

Questionnaire Analysis

The original version of the ELQ was developed by Arnold, Arad, Rhoades, and Drasgow in 2000. The Greek adaptation was conducted by Moustaki and Stalikos. The tool includes five main subscales: trust and support from leaders, participation in decision-making, individual responsibility, support for professional development, and employee initiative. The items are typically rated on a five- or seven-point Likert scale.

Scoring

Scoring is based on a Likert scale, where 1 corresponds to “Never” and 5 (or 7) to “Always.” Each subscale has its own total score, representing its partial score. The sum of all subscales reflects the overall level of empowerment provided by leadership in the organization. A high total score indicates strong empowerment and positive leadership behavior, while a low score suggests limited empowerment and reduced leadership support.

Statistical Analysis

The total score ranges between 5 and 25, assuming each subscale includes five items and a five-point scale is used. Each subscale score thus ranges from 5 to 25. For instance, a score above 20 in the “Trust” subscale indicates a strong sense of security and support from leadership.

Validity

The five-factor structure has been confirmed through factor analysis. The tool shows strong correlations with other established measures of work engagement and satisfaction, as demonstrated in the original study by Arnold et al. (2000). The Greek version of the ELQ has also been validated through relevant studies by Moustaki and Stalikos in Greek workplace populations.

Reliability

All subscales exhibit high Cronbach’s alpha values, above 0.80, indicating strong internal consistency of the items. Test-retest reliability is also high, with results remaining stable over repeated administrations.

References

International References:
Arnold, J., Arad, S., Rhoades, J. A., & Drasgow, F. (2000). The empowering leadership questionnaire: The construction and validation of a new scale for measuring leader behaviours. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 21, 249–269.
Recent studies on empowering leadership (2020–2023) published in reputable journals such as the Journal of Applied Psychology.

Greek References:
Moustaki, M., & Stalikos, A. (year pending publication). Greek adaptation of the ELQ. Hellenic Journal of Psychology.

Keywords: Empowerment, leadership, Likert, psychometric tools, reliability, validity, organizational behavior