Managing by values in healthcare: Development and validation of the health care values inventory measurement scale.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to conceptualise and develop the Health Care Values Inventory (HEVAIN). For this purpose, we first explore key organizational values at different levels of the organisation. Then, we propose and validate a measurement scale based on the Triaxial system of values, which is represented by three axes, including ethical-social values, practical values (economic-pragmatic) and poietic (emotional). METHODS: Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis were performed to check the validity of the proposed measurement scale. RESULTS: Using a sample of 535 employees from a semipublic healthcare organisation, the results showed that the HEVAIN measurement scale loaded satisfactorily onto three factors, and overcame the psychometric properties of dimensionality, reliability and validity. CONCLUSION: This research offers a new measurement scale to capture organizational values in healthcare organisations. This new tool provides both scholars and healthcare managers with an instrument to diagnose and manage organizational values, which gives key information to develop sustained competitive advantages.

Altruistic leadership and affiliative humor's role on service innovation: Lessons from Spanish public hospitals.

Despite literature identifies aspects that might promote innovation, the relationship between the leadership style and nurses' innovative behavior still remains unclear, and little research has provided evidence of this. To help advance in knowledge of effects of leadership on nurses' innovative behavior, we researched the effect of altruistic leadership on nurses' innovative behavior. In addition, the mediating role of affiliative humor in the relationship between altruistic leadership and nurses' innovative behavior was examined. Questionnaire survey method was followed with a sample of 324 nurses working in public hospitals in Spain. We used structural equation models, to check the research hypotheses. This research reveals that affiliative humor partially mediates the relationship between altruistic leadership and nurses' innovative behavior. Thus, unselfish leaders are crucial to promoting innovative behaviors among nurses, and affiliative humor plays a fundamental role to explain how altruistic leaders enhance nurses' innovative behavior.