Causal-Chains
The bottom row of Table 1 describes causal-chain analysis, which focuses on measuring
the specific links between HRM programs or individual characteristics and business process or
outcomes. For example, Sears, Roebuck & Co., a large U.S. retailer, used data to connect the
attitudes of store associates, their on-the-job behaviors, the responses of store customers, and
the revenue performance of the stores (Rucci, Quinn, & Kim, 1998). This measurement
approach offers tangible data and frameworks that actually measure the intervening links
between human capacity (in this case store associate attitudes reflecting their commitment or
motivation) and business outcomes (such as store revenues). In terms of Figure 1, causal-chain
analysis comes closest to mapping all the linking elements.