Role Stressor Scales
Work stressors are events or conditions at work that have the potential to cause illness, and are a hypothesized cause of employee well-being. We developed measures of role ambiguity and role conflict to adress many of the methodological problems found in previous role stressor measures. The role stressor measure comprises two scales—a six-item Role Ambiguity Scale and a six-item Role Conflict Scale.
Scoring Instructions:
Both scales, role ambiguity scale and role conflict scale are computed from the average of their six items. Note that three items of each scale are reverse-scored. Each role stressor item is on a 7-point scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree).
Role Ambiguity Scale is the average of the following six items (*indicates reverse-scored item):
- I am not sure what is expected of me at work.
- The requirements of my job aren’t always clear.
- I often don’t know what is expected of me at work.
- I know everything that I am expected to do at work with certainty.*
- My job duties are clearly defined.*
- I know what I am required to do for every aspect of my job.*
The Role Conflict Scale is the average of the following six items (*indicates reverse-scored item):
- In my job, I often feel like different people are “pulling me in different directions.”
- I have to deal with competing demands at work.
- My superiors often tell me to do two different things that can’t both be done.
- The tasks I am assigned at work rarely come into conflict with each other.*
- The things I am told to do at work do not conflict with each other.*
- In my job, I’m seldom placed in a situation where one job duty conflicts with other job duties.*
Citation for Role Stressor Scales:
Bowling, N. A., Khazon, S., Alarcon, G. M., Blackmore, C. E., Bragg, C. B., Hoepf, M. R., Barelka, A., Kennedy, K., Wang, Q., & Li, H. (2017). Building better measures of role ambiguity and role conflict: The validation of new role stressor scales. Work & Stress, 31, 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1080/02678373.2017.1292563
