Measurement equivalence and differential item functioning in family psychology

Several hypotheses in family psychology involve comparisons of sociocultural groups. Yet the potential for cross-cultural inequivalence in widely used psychological measurement instruments threatens the validity of inferences about group differences. Methods for dealing with these issues have been developed via the framework of item response theory. These methods deal with an important type of measurement inequivalence, called differential item functioning (DIF). The authors introduce DIF analytic methods, linking them to a well established framework for conceptualizing cross-cultural measurement equivalence in psychology (C.H. Hui & H.C. Triandis, 1985). They illustrate the use of DIF methods using data from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN). Focusing on the Caregiver Warmth and Environmental Organization scales from the PHDCN's adaptation of the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment Inventory, the authors obtain results that exemplify the range of outcomes that may result when these methods are applied to psychological measurement instruments.