Measuring Tool for the Command Climate of Military Units:...
Transcript of Measuring Tool for the Command Climate of Military Units:...
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Measuring Tool for the Command Climate of Military
Units: The Intangible Human Dimension
1. Kwong Fook Wen , Col. Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia, Kem Sungai Besi,
57000 Kuala Lumpur, [email protected].
2. Jegak Uli, Prof. Dr. Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia, Kem Sungai Besi, 57000
Kuala Lumpur, [email protected].
3. Inderjit Singh, Lt. Col . Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia, Kem Sungai Besi, 57000
Kuala Lumpur, [email protected].
4. Norazman, Prof. Ir. Dr, Blast Engineering, Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia, Kem
Sungai Besi, 57000 Kuala Lumpur, [email protected]
Abstract
The climate of a unit has a direct impact on its effectiveness. Reviewing the unit
climate is important for a commander as that would allow him to manage his human
resource effectively. Thus, a tool for the review is necessary for assessment of military
units. This paper highlights the research done in developing a command climate survey
tool for commanders. The paper addresses the unit command climate survey factors
such as morale, leadership, cohesion, quality of life and human relations environment.
The research adopted the quantitative approach using the post-positivism philosophy
as its philosophical paradigm. Proportionate stratified random sampling was used for
sampling and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used for the statistical validation
of the model with the data (n = 1,132). The results indicate that the unit command
climate could be explained by the domains of morale and environment (R2 = 0.319).
Morale comprises the dimensions of leadership, motivation, espirit de corps and
spirituality while environment involves the dimensions of work, neighbourhood, family
and friends, and community. The Importance-Performance Matrix Analysis (IPMA)
shows that both the morale and the environment domains have similar total effect on
the command climate of a unit. However, environment demonstrates a more important
role in determining the outcome of the unit command climate when compared to
morale. The paper offers a stand-alone survey tool for a commander who can
administer it to obtain score and tally the results for an analysis of the unit climate. This
would provide indications of the surveyed unit’s strengths and weaknesses.
Keywords: Command Climate, tool, survey. PACS: 89.20.Dd
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Introduction
Command connotes authority and some degree of formality and impersonality
involving official exercise of authority. Also, command implies expectation of obedience
and the implication of imposing specific points of procedure or method (Malaysian
Army, 2011). On the other hand, Issac (1993) pointed out that climate is a complex
construct composed of perceptions about organizational structure, communications,
allocation of responsibilities, rewards, risk-taking, warm and support, performance
standards, acknowledgment of conflicts and identification. Combining the words
command and climate as a single term, command climate can be taken as a perception
among the personnel of a unit on how they will be treated by their leaders and the
opportunities they envision within the unit. Command climate is often seen as an
organizational requirement underpinning the attainment of goals. Consequently, the
command climate of a military unit has a direct impact on its effectiveness and that of
the Army. Currently, there are shortcomings in existing processes of command climate
such as in the aspects of hierarchical barriers, ineffective measurement and perceptual
biases. Thus, an instrument is necessary for the review of command climate as an
assessment of the effectiveness of the military unit.
The purpose of this paper is to highlight the research done in developing a
validated and reliable instrument capable of surveying the status of command climate of
a military unit. First, the paper conceptualizes and operationalizes the components of
command climate by addressing the factors contributing towards command climate
which is identified using meta-analysis. Then, it highlights the methods to illustrate the
development of the instrument used for the measuring of command climate that
involves the identified intangible human dimensions. Consequently, the paper offers the
results and discussion based on the application of the instrument in the survey of
command climate in the military units. The paper ends with a conclusion that includes
a recommendation for future research.
Conceptualizing and Operationalizing the Measure of Command Climate
The literature of command climate has established that command climate and
effectiveness in an organization/military unit are intertwined. A healthy command
climate augments the development of performance, satisfaction, productivity and
growth in the unit (Griffin, 2001). Issac (1993) defined command climate as leader-
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subordinate interactions, performance and interaction. Where else Collin and Jacobs
(2002) defined climate as “a reflection of how organizational members feel about
organizational factors such as job performance expectations, fairness of rewards and
punishment, flow of communication, and example set by the organization’s leaders”.
Therefore, command climate establishes the importance of the organization and its
climate that ultimately shapes the effectiveness of the unit i.e. the organization for
establishing interdependency of its personnel in the unit and the climate as the critical
link between the personnel and the organization (James, 1982). The intangible elements
ascertained from the definitions of command climate are variables that could be
conceptualized and operationalized for the formulation of an instrument for measuring
command climate.
The conceptualization of the measure of command climate is based on the two domains
of command climate identified from the literature review namely, morale and
environment. Each domain comprises of other dimensions from which the
measurement of command climate can be established. These dimensions are considered
as prime components in determining command climate. For this research, the
dependent variable is the ‘command climate’. Where else the independent variables are
parameters involving the domains of morale and environment that contribute to the
command climate. The model for command climate is conceptualized as an integrated
model of a linear relationship between the dependent variable (command climate) and
the independent variables (morale and environment). The theoretical framework for
this research is as shown in Figure 1 below.
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Figure 1: The Theoretical Model of Command Climate
Morale
Morale in a military unit is reflected when the soldiers put the mission before his
own personal concerns although this may entail his own death. There are numerous
definitions used in defining morale. Baynes (1987) defines morale as "the enthusiasm
and persistence with which a member of a group engages in the prescribed activities of
that group”. On the other hand, Manning (1987) describes morale as "a function of
cohesion and esprit de corps." Likewise Britt, Castrol and Adler (2006) term morale as
“a soldier’s level of motivation, commitment, and enthusiasm for accomplishing unit
mission objective under stressful conditions.” Based on the various definitions, for the
purpose of this research, morale is defined as a soldier’s level of motivation,
commitment, and enthusiasm for accomplishing unit mission objective under stressful
conditions. Based on the outcomes of literature review, the various components of
morale that must be measured include the dimensions of leadership, motivation, espirit
de corps and spirituality.
Confidence in leadership amongst officers and soldiers at all levels is needed to
build the morale needed in an organization. The fighting power and combat readiness
will deteriorate in the absence of leadership and morale. Leadership plays a pertinent
role in ensuring the sustenance of the morale of the soldiers especially those who are
exposed to extreme conditions and heavy fire in the battlefield environment (Malaysian
Army, 2007; United States Marine Corps, 1997; United States Department of Defence,
Leadership
Motivation
Espirit de corps
Work
Neighbourhood
Community
Morale
Environment
Command Climate Spirituality
Family & Friends
DependentVariable
Independent Variable
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2010, Australian Army, 2009; Murphy & Farley, 2002; Gal & Manning, 1987; Goyne,
2004; Shamir et al., 2000; Hooker, 1995; Griffith, 2002; Nkewu, 2014).
Motivation is related to the morale of the soldier as he must be motivated to face
the enemy despite the risk of being harmed or killed. Unless the soldiers are motivated,
they will not be combat ready to carry out their mission (Murphy & Fogarty, 2009; Britt,
Castrol & Adler, 2006; Siebold & Manning, 1999; Goyne, 2004).
Espirit de corps aims to create synergy towards the performance and is the
bonding between soldiers and their secondary groups beyond their primary group
bonding that relates the soldiers to the institution of the unit. Therefore, the degree of
bonding between members of an organisation will also reflect their willingness to fight
as a team and the fighting power generated (Malaysian Army, 2011; Cushman, 1947;
Gal, 1986; Baynes, 1987; Siebold & Manning, 1999; Krulak, 1996).
The spirituality aspect forms a strong intangible element that acts as a force
multiplier in a combat force and can be related to the subjective outcomes in the aspects
of perceived quality of life, well-being or life satisfaction. Hence, the level of spirituality
possessed by the soldiers could be used as a measure of the command climate in a
military unit (Malaysian Army, 2007; Campbell, 1976; Andrews & Withey, 1976).
Environment
The Oxford English Dictionary defines environment as the surroundings or
conditions in which a person, animal or plant lives or operates (Stevenson, 2013). As
such, the domain of environment in which the soldiers operate has a critical role in
establishing the command climate of a military unit. Based on the literature review, the
aspects of environment that affect the command climate are the dimensions of work,
neighbourhood and housing, community and family and friends. These dimensions
could help in achieving commitment among soldiers that would result directly in high
effectiveness of the unit.
Many past research and studies have concluded that work/job is one of the main
contributors towards quality of life that affect the combat readiness of an armed force
(Campbell, 1976; Andrews & Withey, 1976; Flanagen, 1978; Bestuzhey-Lada, 1980;
Murrell et al., 1983; Glatzer, 1987; Rath & Harter, 2010). The military unit focuses on
the environment through a safe and conducive working environment that would result
in high work satisfaction, therefore enhancing its command climate.
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Neighbourhood and housing provides the social environment that enhances the
quality of life (Sirgy & Cornwell, 2002). Healthy neighborhoods have housing, schools,
commercial and retail facilities, employment, parks and recreation, health care and day
care, personal security and neighborhood safety. Thus, neighbourhood and housing
serve as motivation factors for the soldiers that are important for command climate and
effectiveness in the unit. (Campbell, 1976; Andrews & Withey, 1976; Bestuzhey-Lada,
1980; Murrell et al., 1983; Verwayen, 1980; Glatzer, 1987; Moller, 1992; Rath & Harter,
2010).
Community living in nilitary bases that are of quality and standard could
enhance the espirit de corps and morale of the soldiers (Malaysian Army, 2011). It
involves community integration and participation as well as the availability of social
support (National Research Council, 2002). These indicators contribute towards their
quality of life and the environment of command climate in the unit. (Flanagen, 1978;
Bestuzhey-Lada, 1980; Murrell et al., 1983; Glatzer, 1987; Moller, 1992; Rath & Harter,
2010).
Research has shown that work-family conflict increased work turnover, caused
more sickness absences (Hacker & Doolen, 2003) and less job done, as well as poor
family, community and life satisfaction (Hassan, Dollard & Winefield, 2009). Thus, the
enhancement of the aspects of family and friends for a better environment is done
through improvement of the service and social environment. Therefore, a measure of
commitment towards family and friends among the officers and soldiers would provide
an indication of the command climate that allow them to carry out their missions.
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Operationalizing the Domains of Command Climate
The identified dimensions of morale and environment were operationalized by
using the descriptions as shown in Table 1 below. This operationalization enabled the
construction of items for the survey questionnaire of the eight identified dimensions
used in the instrument for command climate.
Table 1 - Descriptions of the domains of command climate Domain Dimension Description Morale Leadership The degree to which subordinates have confidence
and trusts in their leaders. Motivation Motivation for combat can be understood as “the
impulse that compels the soldier to face the enemy on the battlefield” or “the determination that induces soldiers to fight, in spite of the adversities and the inherent dangers of war”.
Espirit de
corps The feeling of pride that goes along with the sense of belonging, fellowship and loyalty between comrades, units, formations and Corps in times of peace and war. The bonding between soldiers and their secondary groups beyond their primary group bonding that relates the soldiers to the institutions of the unit.
Spirituality “Spiritual fitness” is the core values, beliefs, and the
source of one’s meaning in life and the provision of psychological and counselling services.
Environment Work A safe and conducive working environment that
result in high work satisfaction. Neighbour-
hood High quality and standard housing facilities and infrastructure, encompassing the necessary maintenance services.
Community The interaction of personnel between military
installations and their surrounding or nearby civilian communities. The provision of community facilities in bases that are of quality and standard.
Family and
friends Family unity and supports from friends.
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Methods Used For the Measure of Command Climate
The research adopted the quantitative method approach and embraced the post-
positivism philosophy as its philosophical paradigm. The survey research involved
cross-sectional studies using a questionnaire for data collection. The questionnaire
consisted of a 42 items ten-point Likert-scale paper and pencil self-report assessment. It
comprises of four sub-scales each measuring the two domains of morale and
environment. The leadership’s dimension contains six items, the motivation’s sub-scale
has four items, the espirit de corps’ sub-scale comprises of five items, the spirituality’s
sub-scale contains four items, the work’s sub-scale comprises of ten items, the
neighbourhood’s sub-scale contains five items, the community’s subscale has four items
and finally the family and friends’ sub-scale contains four items. Command climate is
measured by three items represented by cohesion, willingness to be deployed and the
state of discipline in the military unit. Proportionate stratified random sampling of n =
1,132 was used for sampling in this research. The statistics show that the demography
of the respondents represents a subset of the total population. The quantitative design
used is the non-experimental correlation design that comprises of the multiple
regression and Partial Least Square (PLS) - SEM techniques. The variables of morale,
environment and command climate were used to obtain correlational statistics to
describe and measure the degree of association and their relationships. As in other
multivariate data analysis, considerations that are needed when applying PLS-SEM
include the elements of the variate, measurement, measurement scales, coding and data
distributions (Hair et al., 2014). The multivariate measurement involves using several
variables to indirectly measure the concept of command climate to improve
measurement accuracy. The anticipated improved accuracy is based on the assumption
that the variables of morale and environment to measure a single concept of command
climate is more likely to represent all the different aspects of concept and thereby result
in a more valid measurement of the concept (Hair et al., 2014).
The data screening and descriptive analysis show the suitability of the data
collected. The 5 % Trimmed Mean statistics shows that the two mean values obtained
for all the items in the command climate measurement model are not very different
indicating that there is no requirement to investigate the data points. The histograms of
all the dimensions show scores which are reasonably normally distributed. The Q-Q
Plots also show reasonably straight lines that suggested a normal distribution of the
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data. Similarly, the detrended normal Q-Q Plots that were obtained by plotting the
actual deviation of the scores formed straight lines with no real clustering of points
indicating normal distribution of data. The analysis output obtained using the IBM-SPSS
indicates that all the items of the dimensions of the morale variable have correlation
coefficients > 0.3, indicating that the data are suitable for further analysis (Pallant,
2015).
Results and Discussion
The hypothesized relationships among the constructs of morale and
environment with command climate were obtained by running the PLS-SEM algorithm
in obtaining the estimates for the structural relationships (i.e. path coefficients). The
results of the PLS-SEM algorithm are as presented in Figure 2 below:
Figure 2 : Structural Relationship of the domains of Command Climate
The R2 value of 0.319 of command climate indicate that 31.9% of command
climate is predicted by the constructs of morale and environment. The estimated path
coefficients, β, obtained indicate standardized values between -1 and +1 representing
positive and negative relationships. The results of the path coefficients indicate that
morale (β = 0.317) and environment (β = 0.274) have positive relationships with
command climate. The β values indicate that environment is a weaker indicator than
morale in the structural model of command climate. The structural model shows that
there are relationships between morale with environment (β = 0.828). As pointed out
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by Hair et al. (2014), the values of the variables of command climate that are close to +1
or -1 are statistically significant. The ultimate test to determine the significance of the
coefficients was conducted by means of bootstrapping. The results of the bootstrapping
are indicated in Figure 3 below.
Figure 3: Bootstrapping results of the command climate structural model
The bootstrapping results provides the standard errors and compute the
empirical t values that determine whether the coefficients are significant. The results in
Table 2 below indicate that the relationships between morale and environment with
command climate as well as morale with environment are significant at a level of 5%
probability of error as all the t values are >1.96 threshold value. Amongst the two
predictive constructs, morale (β = 0.317) has better total effect in predicting command
climate as compared to environment (β = 0.274).
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Table 2: Significant t value of the command climate model
Construct Path Coefficient
t Value (>1.96)
Remark
Morale <-> Command Climate 0.317 6.609 Significant Environment <-> Command Climate
0.274 6.049 Significant
Morale <-> Environment 0.828 48.032 Significant
The relative importance of the dimensions/sub-domains in measuring the
constructs/variables of morale and environment is as summarized in Table 3 below.
Spirituality (f2 = 0.45) and motivation (f2 = 0.348) stood out among the other
dimensions in its importance in measuring morale. As for the measure for the
environment construct, community (f2 = 0.361) contributed most among the four
dimensions used in measuring the construct.
Table 3 : Relative importance f2 of the dimensions of command climate
Variable/ Construct
Dimension/ Sub-domain
Command Climate Path Coefficient f2 effect
size Remark
Morale Leadership 0.489 0.314 Medium effect
Motivation 0.508 0.348 Large effect Espirit de corps 0.487 0.311 Medium
effect Spirituality 0.557 0.45 Large effect Environment Work 0.502 0.337 Medium
effect Neighbourhoo
d 0.450 0.253 Medium
effect Community 0.515 0.361 Large effect Family 0.483 0.305 Medium
effect The importance-performance matrix analysis (IPMA) was used to extend the
results of PLS-SEM by taking the performance of each construct to draw conclusions on
its performance and the relative importance of constructs in explaining other constructs
in the structural model of command climate. The extension builds on the PLS-SEM
estimates of the path model relationships and adds an additional dimension to the
analysis that considers the latent variables’ average values (Hair et al., 2014). IPMA
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contrasts the command climate structural model total effect (importance) and the
average values of the latent variable scores (performance) to highlight significant areas
for improvement for the morale and environment aspects so as to improve the
command climate of the military unit. The results of the command climate structural
model based on the rescaled data is reflected in Figure 4 below. The target latent
variable/construct, command climate, has a value of 67.50. Contributing towards the
score of command climate are the scores of morale with a value of 68.87 and
environment with a value of 67.07. Thus, the relative performance of the three
exogenous constructs is headed by morale and followed by environment.
Figure 4: Rescaled command climate structural model
The creation of an IPMA representation of the command climate model in the
form of a graph as shown in Figure 5 below. The IPMA of command climate reveals that
both morale and environment are of similar importance for establishing command
climate. The IPMA of the command climate model provides additional information that
though morale and environment provide similar contribution towards the performance
of command climate, the environment aspect is of higher relative importance in the
overall measure of the command climate. This analysis can be seen from the values of
the total effect of environment that is almost double that of morale. Thus, there is a need
for the military unit to maintain the performance of both morale and environment.
Concomitantly, emphasis must also be placed in enhancing the importance of morale
domain in order to augment the overall effectiveness of command climate in the unit.
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Figure 5: IPMA of command climate
Conclusion
The command climate of a military unit has a direct bearing on its performance
and effectiveness. Currently, there are some shortfalls in reviewing the command
climate of units that are often subjected to perceptual biases, hierarchical barriers and
ineffective measurement. Thus, this paper highlights the research done in the
development of an instrument the review of command climate as an assessment of the
effectiveness of the military unit. The unit command climate survey factors under the
domain of morale and environment have been addressed during the research. The
research adopted the quantitative method approach using the post-positivism
philosophy as its philosophical paradigm. The sampling was done using proportionate
stratified random sampling. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was then used for the
statistical validation of the model with the data (n = 1,132). The results indicate that
31.9% of the command climate variable are explained by the domains of morale and
environment (R2 = 0.319). The output of the research is a survey instrument that could
measure command climate based on morale and environment. The items of morale
focus on the dimensions of leadership, motivation, espirit de corps and spirituality
while the items for environment involve the dimensions of work, neighbourhood, family
and friends, and community. The Importance-Performance Matrix Analysis (IPMA)
shows that both the morale and the environment domains have similar total effect on
the command climate of a unit. However, environment demonstrates a more important
role in determining the outcome of the unit command climate when compared to
morale. The final outcome of the research offers a stand-alone survey tool for a
commander who can administer it to obtain score and tally the results for an analysis of
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the unit climate. This would provide indications of the surveyed unit’s strengths and
weaknesses. The research did not look into the mediation and moderation effect of the
morale or environment variables that could alter the results of the command climate.
Thus, for future research, this aspect of moderation and mediation should be considered
in reviewing the instrument for measuring the command climate in the military units.
Acknowledgments
The author extends his utmost gratitude to the Malaysian Armed Forces and the
Malaysian Army for sponsoring his studies. Appreciation is also extended to the
National Defence University of Malaysia’s Niche Research Group Grant Scheme (NRGS)
and Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS) project teams on Morale headed by
Professor Dr. Jegak Uli and Lieutenant Colonel Inderjit Singh Tara Singh respectively for
including him as a member of the team of which much research skills and experience
have been gained.
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