Measurement invariance of discipline in different cultural contexts

Authors

Li Huang, Tuskegee UniversityFollow
Patrick S. Malone, University of South CarolinaFollow
Jennifer E. Lansford, Duke UniversityFollow
Kirby Deater-DeckardFollow
Laura Di Giunta, University of Rome La SapienzaFollow
Anna Silvia Bombi, University of Rome La Sapienza
Marc H. Bornstein, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human DevelopmentFollow
Lei ChangFollow
Kenneth A. Dodge, Duke UniversityFollow
Paul Oburu, Maseno UniversityFollow
Concetta Pastorelli, University of Rome La SapienzaFollow
Ann T. Skinner, Duke UniversityFollow
Emma Sorbring, University West
Sombat Tapanya, Chiang Mai UniversityFollow
Liliana Maria Uribe Tirado, Universidad San BuenaventuraFollow
Arnaldo Zelli, University of Rome
Liane Peña Alampay, Ateneo de Manila UniversityFollow
Suha M. Al-Hassan, Hashemite UniversityFollow
Dario Bacchini, Second University of NaplesFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2-2-2012

Abstract

The measurement invariance of mother-reported use of 18 discipline strategies was examined in samples from 13 different ethnic/cultural groups in nine countries (China, Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, the Philippines, Sweden, Thailand, and the United States). Participants included approximately 100–120 mothers and their children aged seven to 10 years from each group. The results of exploratory factor analyses and multi-group categorical confirmatory factor analyses (MCCFA) indicated that a seven-factor solution was feasible across the cultural groups, as shown by marginally sufficient evidence for configural and metric invariance for the mother-reported frequency on the discipline interview. This study makes a contribution on measurement invariance to the parenting literature, and establishes the mother-report aspect of the discipline interview as an instrument for use in further cross-cultural research on discipline.

Recommended Citation

Li Huang, Patrick S. Malone, Jennifer E. Lansford, Kirby Deater-Deckard, Laura Di Giunta, Anna Silvia Bombi, Marc H. Bornstein, Lei Chang, Kenneth A. Dodge, Paul Oburu, Concetta Pastorelli, Ann T. Skinner, Emma Sorbring, Sombat Tapanya, Liliana Maria Uribe Tirado, Arnaldo Zelli, Liane Alampay, Suha M. Al-Hassan & Dario Bacchini (2011) Measurement invariance of discipline in different cultural contexts, Family Science, 2:3, 212-219, DOI: 10.1080/19424620.2011.655997