Organizational Health Inventory for Secondary Schools (OHI-S)

Abstract

The Organizational Health Inventory for Secondary Schools (OHI-S) is a widely used instrument designed to assess the overall perceived organizational health of secondary educational institutions. Developed by Hoy, Tarter, and Kottkamp, this scale provides a comprehensive diagnostic tool for faculty members to evaluate the operational effectiveness, leadership behavior, and internal relationships within their school environment. The OHI-S conceptualizes organizational health through seven distinct dimensions, including factors related to institutional resilience against external pressures, the influence and supportive behavior of the principal, teacher camaraderie, and the school’s commitment to academic emphasis. The instrument utilizes a 4-point Likert scale, demonstrating strong internal reliability across all measured subscales.

Keywords

Organizational health, school climate, secondary schools, principal leadership, teacher morale, institutional integrity, academic emphasis, organizational psychology, educational administration.

Authors

Wayne K. Hoy, Cecil J. Tarter, Robert B. Kottkamp

Purpose

The primary purpose of the OHI-S is to systematically measure and diagnose the organizational dynamics that contribute to a healthy, functional, and effective school climate. By gathering data from faculty, the instrument aims to identify strengths and weaknesses across critical organizational dimensions. This information is crucial for administrators and researchers seeking to implement targeted interventions designed to improve overall school performance, enhance teacher satisfaction, and foster an environment conducive to student learning and achievement.

The OHI-S is specifically tailored for secondary schools, providing a framework based on the open systems theory of organizations. It enables the comparison of a school’s profile against established norms or benchmarks, facilitating evidence-based decisions regarding organizational restructuring, leadership development, and resource allocation within the educational context.

Construct

The scale measures the construct of Organizational Health, defined as the school’s capacity to adapt to its environment, achieve its goals, and maintain internal cohesion and morale. This construct is operationalized through seven distinct, empirically derived dimensions:

• Institutional Integrity (II): The extent to which the school is protected from unreasonable community or parental pressures and maintains its educational mission.
• Initiating Structure (IS): The principal’s behavior focused on defining roles, establishing clear expectations, and enforcing standard rules and regulations.
• Consideration (C): The principal’s behavior characterized by friendliness, approachability, trust, and concern for the personal welfare of faculty members.
• Principal Influence (PI): The principal’s ability to influence the actions of superiors (e.g., the superintendent or board) and secure necessary resources for the school.
• Resource Support (RS): The availability and accessibility of necessary materials, supplies, and supplementary resources for classroom instruction.
• Morale (M): The general feeling of confidence, enthusiasm, trust, and friendliness among the faculty, coupled with a sense of identification with the school.
• Academic Emphasis (AE): The shared belief among faculty and students that high academic standards are achievable and that success is recognized and valued.

Validity

While specific quantitative validity coefficients (such as criterion or predictive validity) are often detailed in accompanying manuals, the OHI-S demonstrates strong construct validity rooted in its theoretical foundation (Open Schools/Healthy Schools model) and its development through rigorous factor analytic procedures. The items are designed to comprehensively cover the organizational behaviors and perceptions hypothesized to define a healthy school environment. Subsequent research and use of the OHI-S have consistently supported its structure, showing that the seven dimensions meaningfully differentiate between healthy and unhealthy organizational profiles.

Reliability

The OHI-S exhibits strong internal consistency, confirming the reliability of its subscales. The reliability coefficients (Cronbach’s Alpha) derived from various administrations indicate that the items within each dimension measure their respective construct cohesively. The reported coefficients are exceptionally high, suggesting excellent reliability for research and diagnostic purposes:

• Institutional Integrity: .91
• Initiating Structure: .89
• Consideration: .90
• Principal Influence: .87
• Resource Support: .95
• Morale: .92
• Academic Emphasis: .93

These high scores confirm that the instrument provides stable and dependable measures of organizational health across different secondary school settings.

Factor Analysis

The structure of the OHI-S was established through factor analysis, which identified seven distinct, yet related, dimensions of organizational health. The factor structure ensures that the scale components are empirically distinct and collectively account for the variance in perceptions of school health. The items load onto the seven factors as follows (Note: Items for Initiating Structure are inferred from content):

• Institutional Integrity (II): Items 1, 8 (R), 15 (R), 22 (R), 29 (R), 36 (R), 39 (R)
• Consideration (C): Items 3, 10, 17, 24, 31
• Principal Influence (PI): Items 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 (R)
• Resource Support (RS): Items 5, 12, 19, 26, 33
• Morale (M): Items 6, 13, 20 (R), 27, 34 (R), 37, 40, 42, 44
• Academic Emphasis (AE): Items 7, 14, 21, 28, 35, 38, 41, 43
• Initiating Structure (IS): Items 4, 11, 18, 25, 32 (Items focused on standards and expectations.)

Items marked (R) are reverse-scored to maintain consistency in the direction of the scale, where higher scores indicate greater organizational health.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report faculty survey/Organizational diagnostic tool

Format: 44 items measured on a 4-point Likert scale.

Language Available: Primarily English (Original development).

Population Group: Educational Professionals (Teachers/Faculty).

Age Group: Adult (Specific to employed faculty members).

Population Details: The scale is specifically normed and validated for use in secondary schools (middle schools and high schools).

Test Methodology: Respondents rate the frequency of specific organizational behaviors and perceptions within their school using the following response anchors: 1 = rarely occurs, 2 = sometimes occurs, 3 = often occurs, 4 = very frequently occurs. The total score is calculated by summing the scores of the seven dimensions (with reverse scoring applied to items 8, 15, 20, 22, 29, 30, 34, 36, and 39).

Keywords

Organizational health inventory, OHI-S, Hoy, Tarter, school effectiveness, principal behavior, teacher efficacy, educational psychology, organizational climate, institutional integrity, internal consistency.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided in source material.

Affiliation Email addresses: Not provided in source material.

Correspondence Address: Correspondence is typically directed through the primary author, Wayne K. Hoy (www.waynekhoy.com).

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The OHI-S was developed in the early 1990s (e.g., 1991 publication). The instrument is frequently used in academic research and educational practice. Information regarding formal permissions and fees should be sought directly from the primary authors or the publishers of the foundational texts (e.g., Sage, Corwin Press). The original PDF of the instrument, including scoring details, can be downloaded here: http://www.waynekhoy.com/pdfs/ohi-s.pdf.

Reference’s

The development and application of the OHI-S are documented in several key academic publications:

• Hoy, W. K., Tarter, C. J., & Kottkamp, R. B. (1991). Open schools/healthy schools: Measuring organizational climate. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
• Hoy, W. K., & Tarter, C. J. (1997). The road to open and healthy schools: A handbook for change, Elementary Edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
• Hoy, W. K., & Woolfolk, A. E. (1990). Organizational socialization of student teachers. American Educational Research Journal, 27, 279-300.
• Hoy, W. K., & Woolfolk, A. E. (1993). Teachers’ sense of efficacy and the organizational health of schools. Elementary School Journal, 93(4), 355-372.
• Hoy, W. K. & Feldman, J. A. (1999). ‘Organizational Health Profiles for High Schools,’ in Freiberg, H. J. (ed.) School Climate: Measuring, Improving and Sustaining Healthy Learning Environments, Philadelphia, PA: Falmer Press, Taylor & Francis Group, pp. 84-102.

Items of the Organizational Health Inventory for Secondary Schools (OHI-S)

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

1. Teachers are protected from unreasonable community and parental demands.

2. The principal gets what he or she asks for from superiors.

3. The principal is friendly and approachable.

4. The principal asks that faculty members follow standard rules and regulations.

5. Extra materials are available if requested.

6. Teachers do favors for each other.

7. The students in this school can achieve the goals that have been set for them.

8. The school is vulnerable to outside pressures.

9. The principal is able to influence the actions of his or her superiors.

10. The principal treats all faculty members as his or her equal.

11. The principal makes his or her attitudes clear to the school.

12. Teachers are provided with adequate materials for their classrooms.

13. Teachers in this school like each other.

14. The school sets high standards for academic performance.

15. Community demands are accepted even when they are not consistent with the educational program.

16. The principal is able to work well with the superintendent.

17. The principal puts suggestions made by the faculty into operation.

18. The principal lets faculty know what is expected of them.

19. Teachers receive necessary classroom supplies.

20. Teachers are indifferent to each other.

21. Students respect others who get good grades.

22. Teachers feel pressure from the community.

23. The principal’s recommendations are given serious consideration by his or her superiors.

24. The principal is willing to make changes.

25. The principal maintains definite standards of performance.

26. Supplementary materials are available for classroom use.

27. Teachers exhibit friendliness to each other.

28. Students seek extra work so they can get good grades.

29. se‎lect citizen groups are influential with the board.

30. The principal is impeded by the superiors.

31. The principal looks out for the personal welfare of faculty members.

32. The principal schedules the work to be done.

33. Teachers have access to needed instructional materials.

34. Teachers in this school are cool and aloof to each other.

35. Teachers in this school believe that their students have the ability to achieve academically.

36. The school is open to the whims of the public.

37. The morale of the teachers is high.

38. Academic achievement is recognized and acknowledged by the school.

39. A few vocal parents can change school policy.

40. There is a feeling of trust and confidence among the staff.

41. Students try hard to improve on previous work.

42. Teachers accomplish their jobs with enthusiasm.

43. The learning environment is orderly and serious.

44. Teachers identify with the school.