Purpose The Motivating By Appreciation (MBA) Inventory is an online assessment that identifies employees’ preferred ways of receiving appreciation from their colleagues, including their primary language of appreciation. This study aims to examine the internal consistency of the MBA Inventory by analyzing the results of over 114,000 employees. Given that the data are categorical, the coefficient alpha τ , a nonparametric measure of internal consistency, was used. The results found the internal consistency for identifying employees’ primary language of appreciation to be at an acceptable level. Design/methodology/approach Results of 114,828 individuals who had taken the MBA Inventory were analyzed. The results of the MBA Inventory are nominal data (the languages of appreciation: Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Acts of Service, Tangible Gifts); therefore, the commonly used Pearson’s correlation coefficient is not appropriate. Alternatively, a nonparametric measure of internal consistency, Cronbach’s coefficient alpha τ , was used for the analysis to determine the consistency of the items for each appreciation language in identifying employees’ primary language of appreciation. Findings While, for the Pearson’s correlation coefficient, correlations of 0.70 or higher are considered acceptable, acceptable coefficient alpha τ correlations range from 0.20 to 0.40. The results of this analysis found the MBA Inventory to have acceptable internal consistency, with a coefficient alpha τ of 0.32. That is, the ability of the assessment items to identify an individual’s preferred appreciation language is significantly more accurate than if the individual had responded randomly. Research limitations/implications Even though the MBA Inventory is available in eight languages and has been used globally, the vast majority (>90%) of individuals taking the inventory are primarily English-speaking and located in the USA. Thus, the generalizability of the results is limited for other cultures and languages. Originality/value The MBA Inventory has been used by thousands of companies and organizations, and taken by over 350,000 employees, but the psychometric properties of the inventory are still being examined. This study helps solidify one aspect (the internal consistency) of the inventory’s ability to accurately assess the ways employees prefer to be shown appreciation.
