The developing and testing of KIWEST - a Survey Target in Knowledge Intensive Work Environments

1. The developing and testing of KIWEST
---- a Survey Target in Knowledge Intensive
Work Environments
Kirsti Godal Undebakke, Marit Christensen, Siw Tone Innstrand,
Monica Lillefjell, Line Oldervoll, Geir Arild Espnes.

2. – The sector’s need for a tool
– Based on theory and empirical findings
– Use of data in future research
Important starting points:

3. Development steps:
• Literature, Qualitative pilot interviews, test study
→ KIWEST 0.7
• Questionnaire survey process at a faculty at UiO (70
employees), survey and feedback process
→ KIWEST 0.9
• Questionnaire survey process at NTNU (5600
employees, 150 units), survey and feedback process
→ KIWEST 1.0

4. Job-
demands
Job-
resources
Positive
experiences
Negative
experiences
Positive and
negative
consequences
Developed from the Job Demands-Resources model (JD-R)
Bakker & Demerouti 2006
KIWEST 1,0

5. Job-
demands
Job-
resources
Positive
experiences
Negative
experiences
Positive and
negative
consequences
Work tasks:
-Job autonomi
-Task completion ambiguity
-Empowering leadership
-Recognition
-Social support from supervisors
-Competency demands
-Unfair work tasksrettferdige
arbeidsoppgaver
-tidspress
Organization –
-Fairness of the supervisor
-Trust regarding management
-Goal clarity
-Innovation
-Resources
-Role conflict
Colleges:
-Cohesion in work
teams
-Social community
at work
-Social climate
-Inclusiveness, the
social
responsibility
-Dysfunctional
support
-Conflicts
Work engasjement
Work – home conflict
Work – home facilitation
Meaning of work
Workaholism
Commitment to the workplace

6. Results:
Did it work according to the expectations?
• Statistically:
– Yes, sensitivity and validity testing by factor analyses and
Cronbach`s alpha was satisfactory in most parts of the
instrument
• Practically as a work environment developmental tool:
– Yes, where leaders are positive to the instrument and the
process and put it into their context
– Yes, the instrument seem to release a focus on resources
rather than demands – a health promoting approach

7. What now?
• There is a need for continuous development of the instrument
• A few scales where removed, instead some new are included
and some new ones are under consideration
• Size of the instrument are a crucial factor for response rate
• So - a new version launched at June 13. → KIWEST 1.0
• Will now be used in the University – University College sector
• We aim to work for continuous development of the instrument
• Based both on the practical use in the workplaces and the
research on the instrument

8. Thank you for your attention!