Convergent and Divergent Validity of Three Measures of Conservation Behavior: The Multitrait-Multimethod Approach
Corral V. V. & Figueredo, A. (1999). Convergent and divergent validity of three measures of conservation behavior: The multitrait-multimethod approach. Environment and Behavior , 31, 6, 805-820.
Examined convergent and divergent validity of 3 measures of reuse behavior. Observations of the amount of reuse of glass, clothing, and metal were conducted for 3 family members (2 adults and 1 12-18 yr old) in 43 households, and those direct observations were contrasted with the self-report of reuse of the same products. Two kinds of self-report were obtained: frequency of reuse and quantity of reuse. A multitrait-multimethod (MTMM) matrix of correlations between the reuse of these 3 materials, using these 3 methods of measurement, was analyzed. The matrix revealed the convergent and discriminant validities for the assessments of reuse. Correlations between direct observations and quantity self-reports were higher than correlations between observations and frequency reports. A confirmatory factor analysis of the MTMM matrix confirmed those results, adding significance testing to the validity assessment and to the partitioning of trait and method variance, modeled as latent factors.
