Validating the Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities Composite Measure: An Aviation Industry Pilot Study

<p>Recent research into the aviation management education paradigm shift indicated that education, certification, and experience (ECE) were all important in the aviation industry; however, the relative importance varied between managers depending on their field. Overall, the results identified experience as the most important factor, followed by certification, then education. Furthermore, the authors made a logical connection between the that study and knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs), which would ultimately lead managers to a hiring decision. The purpose of this mixed-methods sequential exploratory pilot study was to develop, validate, and test the reliability of the KSA composite measure (KCM), a data collection device to measure the connection between ECE and KSAs. The three phased approach consisted of (a) an expert panel review by eight research, aviation, and human resource professionals, (b) an institutional review board (IRB) review, and (c) a live pilot using 45 professionals from the aviation industry. The pilot proved to validate and confirm the reliability of the KCM for future use.</p>