Evidence for a second-order latent construct of self-directed learning readiness in virtual teams in Hungary

Abstract

The study focuses on the development of virtual teams from the perspective of individuals by extending the theory of self-directed learning (SDL) beyond the extant research in nursing education and applying it to a sample of adult population working in virtual teams in Hungary. After finding the necessary theoretical steps to connect SDL with virtual teams, research was conducted to validate existing instruments or, if this is impossible, to develop a new SDL instrument for virtual teams. The results confirm the viability of the SDL theories in the context of teams that mostly work remotely. While the validity of known SDL readiness (SDLR) instruments developed for nursing education could not be reliably confirmed on the sample of working adults in virtual teams, it is supported by the conventional three-factor SDLR construct with a reduced item number. In this study, the authors advance a new measurement tool, referred to as SDLR9, which, while mirroring the three original factors known in the literature, also points to a higher-order latent SDLR variable.