Henning Bang

• Hafstad, Marius Duhovic; Bang, Henning; Bjørkli, Cato; Myklebust, Trond & Fostervold, Knut Inge (2024). Cultivating flexibility: the relationship between flexible organizational values, participation climate, and job attitudes from an employee perspective. Current Psychology. ISSN 1046-1310. 43(41), p. 32027–32039. doi: 10.1007/s12144-024-06759-y. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Adopting a flexible organizational culture have the potential to be a remedy for organizations that face globalization, technological advancements, and higher expectations from the workforce. However, research on the mechanism between organizational culture and its outcomes remain understudied. This study adopts an employee-centric approach, suggesting that employees’ perception of a participation climate act as a mediator between flexible organizational culture values (clan and adhocracy values) and employees’ organizational commitment and readiness for change. Cross-sectional data was collected from 619 police employees and analyzed by a two-step structural equation modeling approach. The results supports participation climate as a mediator. Participation climate partially mediated the relationship between clan culture and organizational commitment, adhocracy culture and organizational commitment, and adhocracy culture and eadiness for change. Full mediation was found for the relationship between clan culture and readiness for change. Theoretically, this study provides supporting evidence of a relationship between employees’ perceptions of flexible organizational values and a climate for participation, grounded in the notion that organizational climate is the surface level manifestation of organizational culture. Practically, the results offer valuable insight for leaders and organizations who seek knowledge on flexible values, participation climate, employee commitment and readiness for change.

• Nilsen, Fredrik Andre; Bang, Henning & Røysamb, Espen (2024). Personality traits and self-control: The moderating role of neuroticism. PLOS ONE. 19(8). doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0307871. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Self-control is important for mental and physical health, and personality traits are vital antecedents for self-control. Previous studies suggest that conscientiousness and extraversion enhance self-control, whereas neuroticism hampers it. However, the link between personality and self-control has mostly been studied using a narrow conceptualization of self-control, as the ability to resist impulses, thus excluding initiatory self-control. Also, no studies have examined whether and how personality traits interact with one another to increase, or reduce, self-control. Data were collected on two occasions from 480 military cadets (31.04% female) to examine the relationship between the Big Five personality traits and self-control (general, inhibitory, and initiatory self-control). Furthermore, the study investigated the moderating role of neuroticism, as a trait and as individual facets, on the relationship between the other personality traits and self-control. Although neuroticism correlated negatively with all self-control dimensions, there were unique relations only with general and inhibitory self-control. Extraversion correlated positively with all self-control dimensions but was only uniquely related to initiatory self-control. Conscientiousness correlated positively with all self-control dimensions and this pattern persisted when we assessed the unique effects. Openness to experience and agreeableness correlated positively with general and inhibitory self-control but had no unique effects on any of the self-control dimensions. Neuroticism negatively moderated the relationship between extraversion and both general and inhibitory self-control, and the relationship between conscientiousness and both general and initiatory self-control. The facet-level analysis confirmed the general patterns and provided further detail on which facets of neuroticism were the most influential as moderators. In conclusion, the study highlights the critical role of different types of self-control, and that neuroticism plays a cardinal role for the effects of conscientiousness and extraversion on self-control.

• Boe, Ole; Fahsing, Ivar André & Bang, Henning (2024). Identifying important character strengths for investigative leaders in the Norwegian police: Implications for their future education. ICERI Proceedings. p. 4758–4765. doi: 10.21125/iceri.2024.1174. Full text in Research Archive
• Boe, Ole & Bang, Henning (2023). Assessing the correlation between character strengths and mental toughness in military officers. International Journal of Emergency Mental Health. ISSN 1522-4821. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2023). Organisasjonskultur. In Einarsen, Ståle Valvatne; Martinsen, Øyvind L. & Skogstad, Anders (Ed.), Organisasjon og ledelse. Gyldendal Akademisk. ISSN 9788205583078. p. 439–468. Full text in Research Archive
• Mogård, Emil Viduranga; Rørstad, Ole Bendik & Bang, Henning (2023). The Relationship between Psychological Safety and Management Team Effectiveness: The Mediating Role of Behavioral Integration. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH). ISSN 1661-7827. 20(1). doi: 10.3390/ijerph20010406. Full text in Research Archive
• Fyhn, Bård; Bang, Henning; Sverdrup, Therese & Schei, Vidar (2022). Safe Among the Unsafe: Psychological Safety Climate Strength Matters for Team Performance. Small Group Research. ISSN 1046-4964. doi: 10.1177/10464964221121273. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Nilsen, Fredrik A.; Boe, Ole; Eilertsen, Dag-Erik & Lang-Ree, Ole Christian (2021). Predicting army cadets’ performance: The role of character strengths, GPA and GMA. Journal of Military Studies. ISSN 2242-3524. 10(1), p. 139–153. doi: 10.2478/jms-2021-0016. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The purpose of this study was to examine how well a set of 12 character strengths (Leadership, Integrity, Open-Mindedness, Bravery, Teamwork, Persistence, Social Intelligence, Love of Learning, Fairness, Self-Regulation, Perspective and Creativity) will predict academic performance (AP) and military performance (MP), compared to high school grade point average (GPA) and general mental ability (GMA). The study sample comprised 123 army cadets of two cohorts from the three-year bachelor's degree programme at the Norwegian Military Academy (NMA). GPA predicted AP (r = 0.32, p ≤ 0.05), but not MP (r = 0.14, n.s.), while GMA correlated significantly with neither AP nor MP. All 12 character strengths correlated significantly with MP (rs ranging from 0.27 to 0.65), and all except for Fairness correlated significantly with AP (rs ranging from 0.18 to 0.58). An average score of the 12 character strengths showed incremental validity beyond GMA and GPA in predicting both AP and MP. Our results suggest that character strengths should be considered when selecting and training army cadets.

• Nilsen, Fredrik A.; Bang, Henning; Boe, Ole; Martinsen, Øyvind L.; Lang-Ree, Ole Christian & Røysamb, Espen (2020). The Multidimensional Self-Control Scale (MSCS): Development and validation. Psychological Assessment. ISSN 1040-3590. 32(11), p. 1057–1074. doi: 10.1037/pas0000950. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Trait self-control is important for well-being and mental and physical health. Most extant measures of self-control are limited in that they do not account for the multidimensionality and specificity of the trait. The aim of this study was to develop and validate a multidimensional and hierarchical scale of self-control in a full and a short version. The development of the Multidimensional Self-Control Scale (MSCS) and the Brief Multidimensional Self-Control Scale (BMSCS) was based on focus groups, a pilot, a main, and a validation sample (total N = 2,409). The 29-item MSCS consists of 6 first-order factors (Procrastination, Attentional Control, Impulse Control, Emotional Control, Goal Orientation, and Self-Control Strategies), 2 second-order factors (Inhibition and Initiation), and a third-order self-control factor. The 8 items in BMSCS provides a general trait self-control score. Findings from exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported the structures across samples, and internal consistency was acceptable. Assessment for acquiescence and sex differences indicated no major impacts on the scales. Strong convergent validity was observed with the Self-Control Scale (SCS) and the Brief Self-Control Scale (BSCS), as well as to other similar concepts. The MSCS subscales discriminated well between each other. Assessment of incremental validity of the MSCS over SCS, when controlling for sex and personality, showed significant increases in explained variance when predicting habits, hardiness, and life satisfaction. Similar significant results were observed for the BMSCS over the BSCS. Overall, results indicate that the new scales are useful measures that integrate recent theoretical and empirical findings of trait self-control. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved)

• Boe, Ole; Nilsen, Fredrik Andre & Bang, Henning (2019). Karakterstyrker hos den militære leder. In Johansen, Rino Bandlitz; Fosse, Thomas Hol & Boe, Ole (Ed.), Militær ledelse. Fagbokforlaget. ISSN 9788245033052. p. 117–134. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Boe, Ole; Eilertsen, Dag-Erik & Nilsen, Fredrik A. (2018). OBSCIF – A RELIABLE AND VALID OBSERVATIONAL INSTRUMENT FOR MEASURING CHARACTER STRENGTHS. ICERI Proceedings. p. 5465–5473. doi: 10.21125/iceri.2018.2268. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Boe, Ole; Nilsen, Fredrik A. & Eilertsen, Dag-Erik (2017). Do character strengths predict how well military cadets succeed during their Bachelor`s program? ICERI Proceedings. p. 7297–7302. doi: 10.21125/iceri.2017.1961. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The Norwegian Military Academy (NMA) aims at educating and developing highly skilled military officers through its Bachelor programs. Prior studies have indicated that twelve character strengths are particularly important for succeeding as a military officer. How important are these character strengths for how the military cadets perform academically and physically during the Bachelor’s programs at the NMA? The purpose of this study is to examine to what extent the twelve character strengths predict how well cadets succeed during their Bachelor programs, and if character strengths outperform mental intelligence as predictor of cadet performance. The cadets’ character strengths were measured with an observational instrument (OBSCIF) filled out by peer cadets at the end of a combat fatigue exercise. The cadets’ performance was measured by physical tests and grades from different courses of the Bachelor programs. Mental intelligence was measured as a general ability score, based on a combined measure of the performance on three tests: Arithmetic, Word Similarities and Figures. Analyses included partial correlations between the twelve character strengths and cadet performance indicators, controlling for mental intelligence. Ten out of twelve character strengths – Bravery, Love of learning, Leadership, Integrity, Perspective, Creativity, Self-regulation, Persistence, Open-mindedness, and Teamwork – correlated moderately to strongly with how the cadets performed either academically or physically, even when controlling for intelligence. The character strengths Fairness and Social intelligence did not correlate significantly with any of the performance criteria. Character strengths seem to be important predictors for how well cadets succeed during their Bachelor’s programs, and they outperform mental intelligence as predictors of cadet performance. Military education programs should consider selecting cadets characterized by certain character strengths, and aim at further developing these character strengths during the education. Character strengths seem to be important predictors for how well cadets succeed during their Bachelor’s programs, and they outperform mental intelligence as predictors of cadet performance. Military education programs should consider selecting cadets characterized by certain character strengths, and aim at further developing these character strengths during the education. The cadets’ character strengths were measured with an observational instrument (OBSCIF) filled out by peer cadets at the end of a combat fatigue exercise. The cadets’ performance was measured by physical tests and grades from different courses of the Bachelor programs. Mental intelligence was measured as a general ability score, based on a combined measure of the performance on three tests: Arithmetic, Word Similarities and Figures. Analyses included partial correlations between the twelve character strengths and cadet performance indicators, controlling for mental intelligence. Ten out of twelve character strengths – Bravery, Love of learning, Leadership, Integrity, Perspective, Creativity, Self-regulation, Persistence, Open-mindedness, and Teamwork – correlated moderately to strongly with how the cadets performed either academically or physically, even when controlling for intelligence. The character strengths Fairness and Social intelligence did not correlate significantly with any of the performance criteria. Character strengths seem to be important predictors for how well military cadets succeed during their Bachelor’s programs, and they outperform mental intelligence as predictors of cadet performance. Military education programs should consider selecting cadets characterized by certain character strengths, and aim at further developing these character strengths during the education.

• Boe, Ole & Bang, Henning (2017). The Big 12: The Most Important Character Strengths for Military Officers. Athens Journal of Social Sciences. 4(2), p. 161–174. doi: 10.30958/ajss.4-2-4. Full text in Research Archive
• Boe, Ole; Nilsen, Fredrik A.; Kristiansen, Ola; Krogdahl, Per & Bang, Henning (2017). Measuring important character strengths in Norwegian Special Forces officers. EDULEARN Proceedings. p. 1623–1631. doi: 10.21125/edulearn.2017.1349. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Problem statement: Serving as a soldier or officer in a military elite or special unit is highly demanding. This requires among other things that the soldier or officer has a well-developed character. Previous studies have identified that 12 character strengths are highly relevant and important for succeeding as a regular officer in the Norwegian Army. The character strengths previously identified as important for regular officers was leadership, integrity, persistence, bravery, citizenship, fairness, open-mindedness, social intelligence, love of learning, perspective, self-regulation, and creativity. There is, however, a lack of systematic research on which character strengths that are crucial for succeeding in Special Forces units, and hence, to develop military training and education in such units. Purpose of study: To investigate which character strengths are considered important for officers of the Norwegian Armed Forces Special Command. Method: 27 officers from the Norwegian Armed Forces Special Command were given a list of 24 character strengths based on Peterson and Seligman’s (2004) taxonomy. Participants were requested to evaluate each character strength according to its importance for success as an officer in their unit. Ratings were given on a scale ranging from 1 (not important) to 5 (very important). Findings and results: Scores of 4.00 and above (important) was used to decide whether a character strength was to be considered important. The respondents gave 15 of the 24 character strengths a score of 4.00 or higher. The main character strength was open-mindedness, closely followed by integrity, teamwork, leadership, persistence, love of learning, bravery, perspective, social intelligence, fairness, creativity, humility/modesty, curiosity, self-regulation and forgiveness and mercy. Conclusions and recommendations: The 15 chosen character strengths included all the 12 character strengths previously identified as important for other Norwegian Army officers. However, the participants in the present study also selected humility/modesty, curiosity, and forgiveness and mercy as important character strengths. This might imply that being selected for and serving in a military special unit is more demanding and complex, and thus require a wider range of character strengths than previously identified.

• Bang, Henning & Midelfart, Thomas Nesset (2017). What characterizes effective management teams? A research - based approach. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research. ISSN 1065-9293. 69(4), p. 334–359. doi: 10.1037/cpb0000098. Full text in Research Archive
• Boe, Ole; Heiskel, Bengt Andre; Grande, Øyvind Moholdt; Nilsen, Fredrik A. & Bang, Henning (2016). Measuring character strengths: A methodological study of military cadets during a field exercise. ICERI Proceedings. p. 6057–6067. doi: 10.21125/iceri.2016.0374. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The Norwegian Military Academy (NMA) uses two different instruments in order to measure character strengths in its cadets, respectively a self-report questionnaire and an observational instrument. The self-report questionnaire is called Values In Action-Inventory of Strengths (VIA-IS) and is a recognized questionnaire. The observational instrument is developed by the NMA and is referred to as OBSCIF (OBServation of Character In Field). The purpose of the research in this study was to determine whether the NMA has chosen the right methods of measurement of character strengths in its cadets. Data were gathered during a field exercise with high physical and psychological stress. Cadets filled out the VIA-IS and was then observed by both fellow cadets and by experienced instructors during the field exercise. Based upon the correlation results, we found, except for two character strengths, low correlations across the methods of self-reporting and observation. Our research revealed several possible sources of error that could explain the low correlations. Sources of error may be related to the person being evaluated, the one who observe, the context and/or the instruments that are used to collect data. However, some significant correlations was found within the methods, which may mean that some character strengths are better suited for measurement through self-report and others through observation. The combination of the two methods self-reporting and observation are therefore likely a correct choice for the NMA. However, more research should be carried out in order to reduce potential sources of error associated with the measurement of character strengths.

• Boe, Ole; Davidson, Sofia Ellen; Nilsen, Fredrik A. & Bang, Henning (2016). A study of observed character strengths in military cadets during a combat fatigue course. ICERI Proceedings. p. 6068–6077. doi: 10.21125/iceri.2016.0376. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This study is a quantitative study on observed character strengths in military cadets at the Norwegian Military Academy. Through descriptive statistics and a correlation analysis, it aims to answer the research question that revolves around the existence of consistency between the different sources of assessment, and what the meaning of the existence or non-existence of consistency may mean. The study draws close connections between the character strengths in the data and their relevance to an officer’s ability, to meet the responsibilities set by both the society and the organisation that they represent. In this study an observational instrument called “OBServation of Character In Field” was used. The observational instrument assesses the cadet’s behaviour in relation to 12 character strengths that have been established as important for a military leader to inhabit. The cadets assessed themselves, and were assessed by their peers and an instructor after having completed an extreme field exercise. The findings showed that the peers and instructor had a much higher consistency in the correlations than any of the other combinations. Further, the cadets had rated themselves higher in seven out of 12 character strengths. The four character strengths that the cadets had rated themselves highest on, were the same four found to be rated the highest in other military studies using the same character strengths. The findings support that the OBSCIF has functioned well in relation to being able to observe character strengths through behaviour

• Boe, Ole & Bang, Henning (2016). The Big 12: The Most Important Character Strengths for Military Officers. Atiner Conference Paper Series. ISSN 2241-2891. PSY2016, p. 1–15. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The Norwegian Military Academy´s main role is to educate future military leaders for the Norwegian Army. After graduating from the Norwegian Military Academy, these leaders will most likely have to deal with a great deal of responsibility and to cope with challenging and difficult situations. Leadership in these situations will demand a high degree of both intellect and character. Systematic research on the specific character strengths that are crucial to possess for military officers to succeed as military leaders is lacking. The purpose of this study is to investigate the experienced military officer’s perception of which character strengths are seen as the most important for military officers in order to succeed as military leaders. A second aim was to investigate if there was any degree of consistency between the character strengths chosen in the present study and those chosen in previous studies. Method: A group of participants consisting of 21 military officers with an average of 10.3 years of active service in the Norwegian Armed Forces took part in the study. The officers were students of the Norwegian Military Academy when the present study was conducted. A list of 24 character strengths was given. The participants were then requested to judge each character’s strength separately based on their subjective perception of the character’s strengths importance for military officers. As a result 13 character strengths were selected as the most important for military officers and their leadership. These were in ranked order: leadership, teamwork, openmindedness, integrity, persistence, bravery, curiosity, love of learning, social intelligence, fairness, perspective, creativity and self-regulation. Conclusions: The results from the present study are consistent and thus corroborate well with findings from the four previous studies conducted at the Norwegian Military Academy. In these four previous studies, 12 of the same 12 character strengths were also chosen as the most important ones for military officers. There thus seems to be a very strong consensus among military officers regarding which character strengths that are seen as important for military officers.

• Bang, Henning; Eilertsen, Dag-Erik; Boe, Ole & Nilsen, Fredrik A. (2016). Development of an observational instrument (OBSCIF) for evaluating character strengths in army cadets. EDULEARN Proceedings. p. 7803–7808. doi: 10.21125/edulearn.2016.0711. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Problem statement: The Norwegian Military Academy (NMA) aims to educate highly competent officers, who have the capacity to lead under extreme conditions. Previous studies have identified 12 particularly important character strengths for succeeding as an officer in the Norwegian army. These are leadership, integrity, persistence, bravery, teamwork, fairness, open-mindedness, social intelligence, love of learning, perspective, self-regulation, and creativity. The NMA wants to observe, evaluate and develop these character strengths during the army cadets’ three-year bachelor’s program. However, a previous study has found that VIA-IS – a survey based questionnaire designed to measure character strengths – poorly predicts what character strengths army cadets actually display during extreme conditions, such as a long and stressful military field exercise. Hence, there is a need for a reliable and valid measure of character strengths displayed under extreme conditions. Purpose of study: To develop a reliable and valid observational instrument for measuring 12 character strengths displayed by army cadets under extreme conditions, such as stressful military field exercises. Method: An observational instrument (OBSCIF – OBServation of Character In Field) was developed and tested on 59 army cadets. The cadets evaluated themselves on VIA-IS and OBSCIF. Consistency between scoring on the two instruments, and scale reliabilities for OBSCIF, were examined. Conclusion: Scores on the 12 character strengths measured by VIA-IS and OBSCIF correlates substantially with each other, indicating that OBSCIF is a valid measure of the 12 character strengths. In addition, reliability coefficients (Cronbach’s alphas) estimated for the 12 scales in OBSCIF are all within acceptable levels, indicating that they provide reliable measures of the 12 character strengths. OBSCIF exists in Norwegian and English, and is available for use by any educational institution who is interested in evaluating character strengths displayed during live settings.

• Boe, Ole & Bang, Henning (2016). The Big 12: The Most Important Character Strengths for Officers. In Papanikos, Gregory T. (Eds.), Psychology Abstracts Tenth Annual International Conference on Psychology 23-26 May 2016, Athens, Greece. Athens Institute for Education and Research (ATINER). ISSN 9789605980528. p. 22–22. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Boe, Ole; Nilsen, Fredrik Andre & Eilertsen, Dag-Erik (2015). Evaluating character strengths in cadets during a military field exercise: Consistency between different evaluation sources. EDULEARN Proceedings. p. 7076–7082. doi: 10.21125/iceri.2016.0374. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Problem statement: The Norwegian Military Academy (NMA) educates cadets who will serve as officers in international military operations. Serving as an officer in such operations is often demanding, and requires that the officer exhibit certain personal strengths and characteristics. Applying assumptions and formulations based on Peterson and Seligman’s (2004) taxonomy of 24 character strengths, prior studies have identified 12 character strengths that are particularly relevant and important for succeeding as an officer in the Norwegian army. The character strengths are: leadership, integrity, persistence, bravery, citizenship, fairness, open-mindedness, social intelligence, love of learning, perspective, self-regulation, and creativity. The NMA have launched a project to find ways of observing, evaluating and developing these character strengths during the cadets’ three-year bachelor’s program. Since no instruments for observing and evaluating character strengths in live contexts exist today, the NMA developed an observer-based instrument for evaluation of character strengths in military field exercises. Purpose of study: To examine the consistency in evaluations across raters when using an observer-based instrument designed to measure 12 vital character strengths in cadets during military field exercises. Method: 60 cadets from the NMA attending a 5-day military field exercise were evaluated on 12 character strengths by three different sources: themselves, peer cadets and supervisors. Evaluations from the different sources were compared, and consistency across sources for each of the 12 character strengths, were examined. Conclusion: 7 of 12 character strengths (leadership, persistence, citizenship, social intelligence, love of learning, perspective, and self-regulation) showed significant and positive correlations between two or three of the evaluation sources. Peers and supervisors were more consistent in their evaluations of the cadets compared to peers/self-evaluation and supervisor/self-evaluation.

• Boe, Ole; Bang, Henning & Nilsen, Fredrik Andre (2015). Developing an observational instrument for measuring character strengths during military field exercises. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. 197, p. 1126–1133. doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.07.363. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Problem statement: Serving as an officer in international military operations is often demanding, and requires that the officer has a well-developed character. Character and character strength are difficult concepts to measure objectively. The most common method for measuring character strengths is with a rating instrument called VIA-IS (Peterson & Seligman, 2004). It employs subjective self-rating measures which may not reflect the character strengths actually displayed in difficult and particularly stressful situations. Observer-based measures of character strength are not yet developed in the research literature. Purpose of study: To design an observer-based instrument to measure vital character strengths during military field exercises at the Norwegian Military Academy (NMA). Method: 12 previously-determined character strengths required for succeeding as a military officer were introduced to participants in a workshop of experienced military officers with expertise in infantry disciplines. The purpose of the workshop was to construct observable measures of the 12 character strengths to assess military cadets during combat field exercises. The workshop participants developed several observable measures for each of the 12 character strengths. Conclusion: The observable measures developed form the basis for an observational instrument to measure character strengths during military field exercises.

• Boe, Ole; Bang, Henning & Nilsen, Fredrik Andre (2015). Selecting the most relevant character strengths for Norwegian Army officers: An educational tool. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. 197, p. 801–809. doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.07.188. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Problem statement: Officers educated at the Norwegian Military Academy (NMA) will most likely serve in leading roles in international military operations, which will demand both intellect and character. There is, however,a lack of systematic research on which character traits that are crucial forsucceeding in these operations, and hence, to develop during military training and education at the NMA. Purpose of study: This paper discusses the process of selecting the most important character strengths for development in cadets attending the NMA. Method Two groups of participants, one expert group and one military group, were given a list of 24 character strengths to select from (Peterson & Seligman, 2004). Findings and Results The following 9 character strengths were most important to both groups: leadership, integrity, persistence, bravery, citizenship, open-mindedness, social intelligence, self-regulation and creativity. In addition, perspective, fairness, and love of learning were chosen by the military group, totaling 12 character strengths in all. Conclusions and recommendations: These 12 character strengths were selected for further researchto explore ways of measuring them live in military training exercises, to determine the extent to which they can be developed through military training, and to see which strengths better predict military officer performance.

• Boe, Ole; Bang, Henning & Nilsen, Fredrik Andre (2015). Experienced military officer’s perception of important character strengths. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. 190, p. 339–345. doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.05.008. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Problem statement: Military officers educated from the Norwegian Military Academy are expected to become leaders in military international operations. Leadership in these contexts will demand a high degree of intellect and character. However, there is a lack of systematic research on which specific character strengths that are crucial to possess for military officers to succeed in international operations. Purpose of study: This paper discusses a group of experienced officer's perception of which character strengths are deemed most important for the Norwegian Military Academy's officers to succeed. Method A group of participants consisting of 25 experienced military officers were given a list of 24 character strengths. They were requested to judge each character strength according to its importance for military officers. Findings and results: 12 character strengths were selected as the most important for military officers and their leadership. These were in ranked order: Leadership, integrity, persistence, bravery, open-mindedness, fairness, citizenship, self-regulation, love of learning, social intelligence, perspective and creativity. Conclusions and recommendations: These 12 character strengths were the same 12 identified as important for military officers in another study conducted at the NMA. It was therefore decided that these 12 selected character strengths will function as the basis for the development of an instrument for observing character strengths during military field exercises.

• Bang, Henning & Midelfart, Thomas Nesset (2015). Ledelse gjennom effektive ledergrupper. In Einarsen, Ståle & Skogstad, Anders (Ed.), Ledelse på godt og vondt: Effektivitet og trivsel. 2. utg.. Fagbokforlaget. ISSN 9788245016581. p. 279–302. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2013). Organisasjonskultur : en begrepsavklaring. Tidsskrift for Norsk psykologforening (Psykologtidsskriftet). ISSN 0332-6470. 50(4), p. 326–336. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Fuglesang, Synne Løvdahl; Ovesen, Mariann Reinås & Eilertsen, Dag-Erik (2010). Effectiveness in top management group meetings: The role of goal clarity, focused communication, and learning behavior. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology. ISSN 0036-5564. 51(3), p. 253–261. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9450.2009.00769.x. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning & Midelfart, Thomas Nesset (2010). Dialog og effektivitet i ledergrupper. Tidsskrift for Norsk psykologforening (Psykologtidsskriftet). ISSN 0332-6470. 47, p. 4–15. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2008). Effektivitet i lederteam - hva er det, og hvilke faktorer påvirker det? Tidsskrift for Norsk psykologforening (Psykologtidsskriftet). ISSN 0332-6470. 45(3), p. 272–286. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2007). Delegering - en nøkkel til effektivt lederskap. Magma forskning og viten. ISSN 1500-0788. 10(5), p. 44–50. Full text in Research Archive

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• Bang, Henning & Midelfart, Thomas Nesset (2021). Effective management teams and organizational behavior: A research-based model for team development. Routledge. ISBN 9780367486730. 246 p. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2020). Organisasjonskultur. Universitetsforlaget. ISBN 9788215042930. 265 p. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning & Midelfart, Thomas Nesset (2019). Effektive ledergrupper. Gyldendal Akademisk. ISBN 9788205496835. 286 p. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Midelfart, Thomas Nesset; Molly-Søholm, Thorkil & Elmholdt, Claus (2015). Effektive ledergrupper. For bedre udvikling, implementering og tværgående sammenhæng. Dansk Psykologisk Forlag. ISBN 9788777069543. 244 p. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning & Midelfart, Thomas Nesset (2012). Effektive ledergrupper. Gyldendal Akademisk. ISBN 9788205410831. 293 p. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2011). Organisasjonskultur. Universitetsforlaget. ISBN 9788215007823. 249 p. Full text in Research Archive

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• Nilsen, Fredrik Andre; Bang, Henning & Røysamb, Espen (2024). The relationship between personality traits and self-control: The moderating role of neuroticism. Full text in Research Archive
• Andvik, Elisabeth & Bang, Henning (2024). Podcast: Lederutvikling av ledergrupper. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Nilsen, Fredrik A.; Boe, Ole & Kibsgaard, Johannes (2023). Measuring character strengths in army cadets: Are self-ratings or other-ratings best? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Nilsen, Fredrik A. & Boe, Ole (2023). Measuring character strengths in army cadets: Are self-ratings or other-ratings most accurate? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Nilsen, Fredrik A.; Boe, Ole & Kibsgaard, Johannes (2023). Measuring character strengths in army cadets: are self-ratings or other-ratings best? INTED Proceedings. p. 6899–6899. doi: 10.21125/inted.2023.1866. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Background: Character strengths are usually measured through self-ratings, e.g. with the VIA-IS survey. There is, however, a debate concerning if self-ratings or other-ratings have highest predictive validity. In a meta-analysis of the predictive validity of personality on academic achievement and job performance, Connelly and Ones (2010) found that “other-ratings yielded predictive validities substantially greater than and incremental to self-ratings” (p. 1092). Objective: To examine whether self-ratings or other-ratings of character strengths are best for predicting military and academic performance in army cadets. Methods: The sample comprised 181 army cadets from three cohorts, attending a three years Bachelor’s degree program at the Norwegian Military Academy (NMA). Self- and other-ratings of 12 character strengths, selected as particularly relevant for succeeding as a military officer, were done one year before final graduation, when the cadets participated in a highly stressful combat fatigue course. Self-ratings were done with VIA-IS survey prior to the combat fatigue course, and with a character strengths observational instrument (OBSCIF) immediately after the course. Other-ratings for each army cadet were done with OBSCIF immediately after the combat fatigue course by 7-9 peer cadets from their own squad. Military performance was measured by two supervisors following them 24/7, who rated the cadets’ performance on a 1-5 scale after the combat fatigue course. Academic performance was measured as Grade Point Average from their Bachelor’s degree program. Results: Self-ratings of the 12 character strengths on VIA-IS and OBSCIF correlated satisfactory, and other-ratings showed high consistency among the 7-9 raters. The VIA Survey showed lowest predictive validity, followed by self-rated OBSCIF measures, while other-rated OBSCIF measures of character strengths showed good to very good predictive validity for both military and academic performance. Conclusion: This study indicates that other-ratings of character strengths predict military and academic performance much better than self-ratings.

• Fyhn, Bård; Bang, Henning; Sverdrup, Therese & Schei, Vidar (2022). Safe Among the Unsafe: Psychological Safety Climate Strength Matters for Team Performance. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hva kjennetegner effektivt teamarbeid i et symfoniorkester? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). What characterizes effective and well-functioning top management teams? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle en læringskultur, preget av tilbakemeldinger og psykologisk trygghet? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Kulturelle utfordringer i sammenslåingsprosesser. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle effektive ledergrupper i helseforetaket? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle seg til en strategisk og effektiv toppledergruppe i statsforvaltningen? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Deg som kulturskaper: Hvordan utvikle kulturen i Kystverket? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle effektive ledergrupper? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Psykologisk trygghet: En forutsetning for å skape en læringskultur. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle kulturen i egen organisasjon? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Leading teams: How to develop effective management teams. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Bruk av verktøyet Leadership Versatility Index (LVI) for 360 graders lederevaluering. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan bruke ledergruppene for å lykkes i det sammenslåtte Vestland fylke. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Om godt lagspill. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan implementere verdiene i organisasjonskulturen vår? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hva er skolekultur og hvordan kan lærere påvirke den? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Strategi og kultur: Hvordan gjøre strategien til en del av kulturen i Statsbygg? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle effektive ledergrupper i Oslo-skolen? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Utvikling av effektive toppledergrupper i statsforvaltningen. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle effektive ledergrupper? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle organisasjonskulturen i egen virksomhet? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Kulturelle utfordringer i sammenslåingsprosesser i domstolene. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle effektive ledergrupper i Agder politidistrikt? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle effektive ledergrupper? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Laget rundt barnet – Hvordan drive godt teamarbeid? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan kan HR bidra til å utvikle organisasjonskulturen i Apotek 1 Gruppen? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hva kjennetegner effektive ledergrupper? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hva kjennetegner effektive team og ledergrupper? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle effektive ledergrupper i skolen? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle faktultetsledergruppa til en effektiv ledergruppe? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle en læringskultur preget av tilbakemeldinger og psykologisk trygghet? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hva kjennetegner effektive toppledergrupper? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Hvordan utvikle organisasjonskulturen på Stortinget? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Leading teams – how to develop more effective management teams. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Effektiv ledelse, ledelsesutvikling og lederveiledning. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2021). Organisasjonskultur: Hva er det, hvorfor er det viktig, og hvordan kan det utvikles? Full text in Research Archive
• Austad, Sara Kasia; Johansen, rino; Bang, Henning & Boe, Ole (2019). Differences in Balanced leadership Behavior in the Norwegian Armed Forces. Full text in Research Archive
• Austad, Sara Kasia; Johansen, Rino Bandlitz; Bang, Henning & Boe, Ole (2019). Balanced leadership behavior in the Norwegian Armed Forces. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Eilertsen, Dag-Erik; Boe, Ole & Nilsen, Fredrik A. (2019). Measuring character strengths: Are self-ratings or other-ratings best? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Eilertsen, Dag-Erik; Boe, Ole; Nilsen, Fredrik A. & Lang-Ree, Ole Christian (2018). Character strengths predict academic and military performance. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Boe, Ole; Eilertsen, Dag-Erik & Nilsen, Fredrik A. (2018). OBSCIF - A reliable and valid observational instrument for measuring character strenghts. Full text in Research Archive
• Boe, Ole; Nilsen, Fredrik A.; Kristiansen, Ola; Krogdahl, Per & Bang, Henning (2017). Important Character Strengths for Norwegian Special Forces Officers. Full text in Research Archive
• Boe, Ole; Bang, Henning; Nilsen, Fredrik A. & Eilertsen, Dag-Erik (2017). Character strengths as important predictors for success in the military. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Eilertsen, Dag-Erik; Boe, Ole & Nilsen, Fredrik A. (2016). OBSCIF: Evaluating Character strengths. Full text in Research Archive
• Boe, Ole; Heiskel, Bengt A.; Grande, Øyvind. M. & Bang, Henning (2016). Measuring character strengths. Full text in Research Archive
• Davidson, Sofia Ellen; Bang, Henning & Boe, Ole (2016). OBSCIF: Self-assessment and observed behaviour. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning & Boe, Ole (2016). Karakter hos militære ledere: eksempler på forskning for og i offisersutdanningen. Full text in Research Archive
• Boe, Ole & Bang, Henning (2016). Assessing the correlation between character strengths and mental toughness in military officers. Full text in Research Archive
• Boe, Ole & Bang, Henning (2015). Status i prosjektet: Karakter hos militære ledere. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning & Boe, Ole (2014). Kartlegging og utvikling av karakterstyrker hos kadetter ved Krigsskolen. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2013). What characterizes effective management teams? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2010). Teamarbeid - et gode eller et onde? Tidsskrift for Norsk psykologforening (Psykologtidsskriftet). ISSN 0332-6470. 47(1), p. 2–3. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2001). Hva kjennetegner effektive ledergrupper? Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Boe, Ole & Nilsen, Fredrik A. (2016). OBSCIF – Evaluation of your character strengths: An observational instrument for rating of character strengths in army cadets. Krigsskolen. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning; Boe, Ole & Nilsen, Fredrik A. (2016). OBSKIF - Vurdering av dine karakterstyrker: Observasjonsskjema for vurdering av karakterstyrker hos kadetter. Krigsskolen. Full text in Research Archive
• Boe, Ole & Bang, Henning (2014). Character in military leaders - a short project description for VIA. Krigsskolen. Full text in Research Archive
• Bang, Henning (2010). Effektivitet i ledergrupper : en studie av sammenhengen mellom gruppeprosesser og teameffektivitet i ledermøter. Universitetet i Oslo. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Hvilken sammenheng er det mellom hvordan man kommuniserer i ledermøter og hva som kommer ut av møtene? Dette er tema for ph.d.avhandlingen ”Effektivitet i ledergrupper: En studie av sammenhengen mellom gruppeprosesser og teameffektivitet i ledermøter”. Avhandlingen består av tre empiriske studier av gruppeprosesser i ledergruppemøter, samt en litteraturgjennomgang av 40 års forskning på effektivitet i beslutnings- og problemløsningsgrupper.<br><br> Gjennom video-opptak av ledermøter, intervjuer og spørreskjemaer har Henning Bang undersøkt sammenhengen mellom hvordan lederne diskuterer saker og teameffektivitet i ledermøter. Han fant at det å sette klare mål for hva man ønsker å oppnå når man tar opp en sak, å holde seg fokusert til saken når den diskuteres, og å si fra hvis man opplever målet for en sak som uklart, er positivt assosiert med teameffektivitet i ledermøtet. Ledere er imidlertid ambivalente til å si fra under møtet, selv om de opplever målet for møtet som uklart eller at diskusjonen vandrer ut på viddene, fordi de antar at det vil medføre negative konsekvenser å ta det opp. Bang fant også at måten man samtaler om sakene på i ledermøtet er av betydning for resultatene som skapes. Jo mer samtalene i ledermøtet er preget av dialog – dvs. at medlemmene er nysgjerrige på hverandres syn og meninger, viser respekt for hverandre når de uttrykker uenighet, utforsker synspunkter som virker kontroversielle eller uforståelige, og prøver å bygge på hverandres syn – desto større er sjansen for at ledermøtets saksresultater, gruppefølelsen og tilfredsheten til gruppemedlemmene vurderes positivt av deltakerne i møtet.

• Bang, Henning & Nygaard, Karen Øverland (2009). Norske toppledergrupper: Hvem er de, hva gjør de og hvor effektive er de? Administrativt Forskningsfond ved NHH. Full text in Research Archive

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