Cross-cultural adaptation and validity evidence of the engaging leadership scale in Brazil

Abstract This study aimed to conduct a cross-cultural adaptation and examine validity evidence for the Engaging Leadership Scale in samples of Brazilian employees and leaders. The adaptation process comprised translation, back-translation, expert evaluation, and focus groups. Two cross-sectional studies were conducted: Study 1 included a general sample of 425 employees, whereas Study 2 comprised 131 leaders from the judiciary. In Study 1, confirmatory factor analysis indicated an excellent fit for the unidimensional model (χ2/df = 3.85; comparative fit index = 0.996; Tucker-Lewis index = 0.996; root mean square error of approximation [90% confidence interval] = 0.082 [0.070-0.094]) and high reliability (ω = 0.969). In Study 2, the unidimensional structure was supported, with satisfactory reliability (ω = 0.896) and convergent validity (r = 0.473; p < 0.001). Overall, the findings indicate that the Engaging Leadership Scale demonstrates adequate psychometric properties for Brazilian employees and provides encouraging preliminary evidence for its application among leaders.