Luppo Kuillman

Chapter 3 80 Instrument Detailed description confirm the higher-order factor solution of both personality meta-traits. After testing the factor analytical model against our data by confirmative factor analysis (see results), we employed for both meta traits scales an algorithm to calcu- late an overall scale score by subtracting the minimum scale score from the raw scale score, dividing this by the scale score’s range, multiplied by 100, resulting in scores ranging from 0 to 100% with a higher score reflecting a higher de- gree of stability or plasticity, respectively. Moral Disengagement Scale Within the framework of moral agency, Bandura (1999) in- troduced the mechanisms of moral disengagement to as- sess individuals’ behavior which is in contradiction with their ethical principles without experiencing any form of guilt or shame. The Moral Disengagement Scale (MDS) measures the degree of disengagement of moral self-sanctions from inhumane conduct. Bandura et al. developed the 32-item Moral Disengagement Scale (MDS). Psychometric testing by Bandura et al. demonstrated a unidimensional scale with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.83 (Bandura et al. 1996). For our study, we modified items in the perspective of general healthcare. The scale’s Cronbach’s alpha of 0.85 in our study was consistent with the findings by Bandura et al. and in- dicated that translation and adaptation did not affect the internal consistency of the scale. An index score was calcu- lated using the algorithm as employed for the personality meta-traits. The MDS is an indicator with a continuum rang- ing from 0 to 100. The lower-end scores reflect the degree of respondents’ self-censure, i.e. moral self-control, mean- ing one refrain from behavior that violates the own moral standard, and the high-end scores indicate a high propensity to morally disengage.