Development and Initial Validation of a Survey for Intellectual Capital in Universities

Problem: The difficulty to measure the Intellectual Capital (IC) in universities is due to little interest for this intangible, even though its relevance to the knowledge economy. Purpose: Design and validate a survey for measure IC in universities from a Resource-based Theory perspective. Method: A subject matter expert panel technique was used to generate 45 items. It was empirically tested with a convenience sample (n=742) of academics, middle managers and principals of institutions of higher education in Mexico. Results and Conclusions: With an exploratory factor analysis, using principal components extraction with Varimax orthogonal rotation, four items were remove and four factors were detected (human capital, structural capital, relational capital and technological capital). The total variance explained was 66.74%. All subscales obtained Cronbach's Alpha higher to .80. There were advances on the measure quality and stability of the questionnaire. In order to generate measure and structural models, this study must be replicated with similar samples. Social implications: Universities should consider managing IC. They are knowledge-based organizations and intangibles are the base of their actions and decisions; their activities must be integrated into the management of knowledge, innovation and service to society.