Using a multilevel structural equation modeling approach to explain cross-cultural measurement noninvariance

Abstract

Testing for invariance of measurements across groups (such as countries o r time points) is essential before meaningful comparisons may be conducted. However, when tested, invariance is often absent. As a result, comparisons across groups are potentially problematic and may be biased. In the current study, we propose utilizing a multilevel structural equation modeling (SEM) approach to provide a framework to explain item bias. We show how variation in a contextual variable may explain non invariance. For the illustration of the method, we use data from the second round of the European Social Survey (ESS). (author's abstract)