Reliability and Validity of the Japanese Version of the Four‐Item Psychosocial Safety Climate Scale (PSC‐4J)

• DOI: 10.1002/ajim.23715
• Publication Date: 2025-03-11T23:18:06Z
• Authors: Akiomi Inoue; Hisashi Eguchi; Yuko Kachi; Maureen F. Dollard; Akizumi Tsutsumi

ABSTRACTBackgroundShort measurement scales are increasingly sought‐after for reasons of efficiency and survey fatigue. A short four‐item measure of an organization's climate for employee psychological health, the psychosocial safety climate (PSC‐4), has gained international usage. However, the psychometric properties of its Japanese version (PSC‐4J) are unknown. We examined the reliability and validity of the PSC‐4J.MethodsAn online survey containing the Japanese 12‐item PSC scale (PSC‐12J), from which the PSC‐4J derived, and relevant variables (job demands, job resources, and outcomes) was administered to 2200 employees registered with a Japanese online survey provider. Two weeks later, the PSC‐12J was measured again with a follow‐up survey of 1400 respondents. Internal consistency and test‐retest reliability were examined by Cronbach's α and intraclass correlation (ICC). Agreement between PSC‐4J and PSC‐12J was examined by Spearman's correlation. Structural validity was examined by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and item response theory (IRT) analysis. Convergent validity was examined by Spearman's correlations of PSC‐4J with relevant variables, comparing these results with the PSC‐12J.ResultsCronbach's α and ICC for PSC‐4J were 0.91 and 0.68, respectively. Spearman's correlation between PSC‐4J and PSC‐12J was 0.97. The CFA assuming a one‐factor structure showed good model fit. The IRT analysis indicated each PSC‐4J item had very high discrimination and appropriate difficulty. Spearman's correlations of PSC‐4J with relevant variables were slightly lower than for PSC‐12J but in the theoretically expected direction.ConclusionsThe PSC‐4J, while slightly inferior to the PSC‐12J in psychometric properties, provides comparable measurements with fewer items while maintaining adequate reliability and validity.