TY - JOUR
T1 - The MACS approach to testing for multigroup invariance of a second-order structure
T2 - A walk through the process
AU - Byrne, Barbara M.
AU - Stewart, Sunita M.
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was supported in part by a grant from the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China (Project No. HKU7016/ 99M). The authors are indebted to P. Bentler for his helpful recommendations regarding particular aspects of the modeling process and to R. Millsap for his insight on issues related to multigroup invariance. Thanks are due also to three anonymous reviewers for their detailed comments and suggestions regarding additional text, references, and graphics to include in the article.
PY - 2006
Y1 - 2006
N2 - The overarching intent of this article is to exemplify strategies associated with tests for measurement invariance that are uncommonly applied and reported in the extant literature. Designed within a pedagogical framework, the primary purposes are 3-fold and illustrate (a) tests for measurement invariance based on the analysis of means and covariance structures (MACS), (b) use of the MACS approach in testing for an invariant higher order factor structure, and (c) tests for latent mean differences relative to both levels of a higher order factor structure. Addressing additional application limitations, the secondary purposes are 2-fold and illustrate (a) determination of invariance based on two substantially different sets of criteria and (b) interpretation of noninvariant measurement items within the context of an item response theory perspective. We are hopeful that readers will find the didactic approach to be helpful in gaining a better understanding of the invariance-testing process.
AB - The overarching intent of this article is to exemplify strategies associated with tests for measurement invariance that are uncommonly applied and reported in the extant literature. Designed within a pedagogical framework, the primary purposes are 3-fold and illustrate (a) tests for measurement invariance based on the analysis of means and covariance structures (MACS), (b) use of the MACS approach in testing for an invariant higher order factor structure, and (c) tests for latent mean differences relative to both levels of a higher order factor structure. Addressing additional application limitations, the secondary purposes are 2-fold and illustrate (a) determination of invariance based on two substantially different sets of criteria and (b) interpretation of noninvariant measurement items within the context of an item response theory perspective. We are hopeful that readers will find the didactic approach to be helpful in gaining a better understanding of the invariance-testing process.
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U2 - 10.1207/s15328007sem1302_7
DO - 10.1207/s15328007sem1302_7
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:33744505225
SN - 1070-5511
VL - 13
SP - 287
EP - 321
JO - Structural Equation Modeling
JF - Structural Equation Modeling
IS - 2
ER -