The purpose of this study was to develop and validate an instrument measuring adult educators' power and influence tactics in program planning practice. The study started with the formulation of a theoretical framework which links program planning behaviors and political contexts. Eight power and influence tactics were hypothesized to reflect different planning behaviors, and seven of them were found to represent distinctive underlying dimensions. A pilot study with 102 adult educators suggested that a reliable scale could be developed to measure these seven tactics. A validation study was conducted for the scale with a total number of 226 adult educators and trainers. Supporting validity evidence for a final version of the instrument was obtained from several sources, including construct validity, convergent and discriminant validity, and nomological validity. Moderate to high reliability estimates were obtained for the seven proposed dimensions of the construct for the instrument. Consequently, the instrument, Power and Influence Tactics Scale (POINTS), is recommended for use in research regarding practice in program planning.
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