The Dimensions of Learning Organization Questionnaire (DLOQ) A cross-cultural validation in an Iranian context

Purpose - The purpose of this research is to assess the validity and reliability of the measurement scores related to the learning organization culture, the Dimensions of Learning Organization Questionnaire (DLOQ), in an Iranian context. This research can contribute to the growing literature of learning in organizations. Design/methodology/approach - The data were collected through distributing questionnaires to 54 service firms and manufacturing companies in ten major cities of Iran during the third quarter of 2010. Rigorous translation procedures, including both forward and backward processes, have been used to guarantee the relevance of this instrumentation in different cultural contexts. Confirmatory factor analysis, simple item-internal consistency estimates, and item inter-correlation analysis were performed to test the validity of DLOQ. Research limitations/implications - There are five positional limitations. First, this study relies on self-report and different perceptions of questions can bring about percept-percept bias. Second, the nature of this research is cross-sectional which may cause causality among variables. Third, the various organizational levels in the questionnaire can render some misinterpretations while answering the questions. Furthermore, the length of the original questionnaire (43 questions) could cause lack of concentration and boredom, which in turn, can impact the results. Last, two constructs related to performance (knowledge and financial performance) in the questionnaire were omitted. Originality/value - This study confirms, according to some statistical results, that the Iranian version of DLOQ has produced reliable measurement scores with the construct validity sufficient to measure the learning organization culture in the Iranian context.