The validity of the factor structure of the general social survey environmentalism scales across gender and ethnicity in the United States

Environmental and behavioral researchers have recently called for model-based empirical methods to address the validity of measurement instruments across diverse populations. Multiple group confirmatory factor analysis (MGCFA) is a powerful and versatile tool for investigating measurement equivalence/invariance (ME/I) for group comparison research. In this study, a MGCFA was performed to examine the MEA of the General Social Survey environmentalism scale used in attitudinal research by Uyeki and Holland (2000). Measurement equivalence/invariance was found to be absent across gender and ethnicity in the United States, thus making it difficult to interpret between-group differences on the constructs being measured. W. E. B. Du Bois's concept of double consciousness is explored as a theoretical foundation for understanding why varying racial and gender groups might understand latent constructs differently.