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Contents
- Abstract
- Extent of the Bias Caused by Common Method Variance
- Potential Sources of Common Method Biases
- Method Effects Produced by a Common Source or Rater
- Consistency motif
- Implicit theories and illusory correlations
- Social desirability
- Leniency biases
- Acquiescence (yea-saying or nay-saying)
- Positive and negative affectivity
- Transient mood state
- Method Effects Produced by Item Characteristics
- Item social desirability (or item demand characteristics)
- Item complexity and/or ambiguity
- Scale format and scale anchors
- Negatively worded (reverse-coded) items
- Method Effects Produced by Item Context
- Item priming effects
- Item embeddedness
- Context-induced mood
- Scale length
- Intermixing items of different constructs on the questionnaire
- Method Effects Produced by Measurement Context
- Time and location of measurement
- Use of common medium to obtain measurement
- Summary of the Sources of Common Method Variance
- Processes Through Which Method Biases Influence Respondent Behavior
- Techniques for Controlling Common Method Biases
- Procedural Remedies
- Obtain measures of the predictor and criterion variables from different sources
- Temporal, proximal, psychological, or methodological separation of measurement
- Protecting respondent anonymity and reducing evaluation apprehension
- Counterbalancing question order
- Improving scale items
- Statistical Remedies
- Harman's single-factor test
- Partial correlation procedures designed to control for method biases
- Controlling for the effects of a directly measured latent methods factor
- Controlling for the effects of a single unmeasured latent method factor
- Use of multiple-method factors to control method variance
- Correlated uniqueness model
- Direct product model
- Comparison of Statistical Remedies for Common Method Biases
- Recommendations for Controlling Method Biases in Research Settings
- Some Additional Considerations
- Controlling for Method Variance in Experimental Research Examining Mediated Effects
- Controlling for Method Variance in Studies Using Formative Constructs
- Conclusions
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Abstract
Interest in the problem of method biases has a long history in the behavioral sciences. Despite this, a comprehensive summary of the potential sources of method biases and how to control for them does not exist. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to examine the extent to which method biases influence behavioral research results, identify potential sources of method biases, discuss the cognitive processes through which method biases influence responses to measures, evaluate the many different procedural and statistical techniques that can be used to control method biases, and provide recommendations for how to...