The effort-reward imbalance theory and measurement of stress in academic context: Construction and validation of student version of the Effort-Reward Imbalance Questionnaire (ERIQ-S)

Introduction: Until now, attention has not been paid to the stressful effect of perception of effort-reward imbalance in university students. The present study aimed at construction and validation of student version of the Effort-Reward Imbalance Questionnaire (ERIQ-S) in a sample of Iranian university students. Methods: A sample of three hundred and seventy unpaid girl students, aged between 19 and 35 years old (21.37 ± 1.91 years), were selected through multiple cluster sampling from University of Mazandaran, Iran. All participants were asked to complete the ERIQ-S, the student version of Oldenburg Burn-Out Inventory (OLBI-S), and the Academic Justice Scale (AJS). Results: Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) showed five factors namely effort, esteem, security, promotion, and over-commitment (29 items) for ERIQ-S, which explained 60.79% of the effort-reward imbalance construct. The findings of Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) confirmed the factor structure of the ERIQ-S. The construct validity of ERIQ-S was also confirmed by the correlation coefficients between the sub-scales and the total score of the questionnaire. The convergent and divergent validity of the ERIQ-S were supported by an expected pattern of correlations between the questionnaire and the measures of burn-out and academic justice. All correlation coefficients between the mean scores of the ERIQ-S and the scores of the OLBI-S and the AJS were statistically significant. The obtained internal consistency was markedly high (Cronbach’s α = .70 to .88). The test-retest reliability of the ERIQ-S was .83. Conclusion: The results suggest that the student version of ERIQ is a reliable and valid measure.