DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION OF A SEVEN-DIMENSIONAL JOB CRAFTING SCALE IN THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRY

Abstract

Job crafting describes the proactive ways in which employees modify aspects of their work to better manage job demands and make effective use of available resources. While existing measures have provided a useful foundation for understanding job crafting, they may not fully reflect the conditions experienced by employees in the chemical industry, where workplace safety, technical requirements, and resource utilization are particularly important. This study therefore develops and validates a multidimensional job-crafting scale specifically for employees in the chemical industry. A quantitative scale-development approach was adopted, and data were collected from 100 employees working in chemical industries in Cuddalore district, Tamil Nadu. A 36-item questionnaire was developed by drawing on the existing literature and the specific characteristics of the chemical-industry work environment. Exploratory Factor Analysis was used to identify the underlying structure of the scale, followed by Confirmatory Factor Analysis to assess the proposed measurement model. The analysis resulted in seven dimensions: Increasing Psychological Job Resources, Decreasing Hindering Job Demands, Increasing Structural Job Resources, Increasing Social Job Resources, Increasing Challenging Job Demands, Increasing Easier Usage of Job Resources, and Increasing Safety Job Resources. The findings suggest that job crafting in the chemical-industry context encompasses established resource- and demand-related aspects as well as context-specific concerns associated with the easier use of job resources and workplace safety. The study extends job-crafting research by providing an industry-specific measurement framework that can help human-resource practitioners understand and support employees' proactive approaches to managing their work. The scale also provides a basis for future research on job crafting across industrial and occupational contexts.