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Testing Equivalence of Mediating Models of Income, Parenting, and School Readiness for White, Black, and Hispanic Children in a National Sample
Author(s) -
Raver C. Cybele,
Gershoff Elizabeth T.,
Aber J. Lawrence
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.103
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1467-8624
pISSN - 0009-3920
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2007.00987.x
Subject(s) - psychology , developmental psychology , ethnic group , equivalence (formal languages) , cohort , structural equation modeling , family income , poverty , competence (human resources) , child development , parenting styles , clinical psychology , social psychology , medicine , philosophy , linguistics , sociology , anthropology , economics , economic growth , statistics , mathematics
This paper examines complex models of the associations between family income, material hardship, parenting, and school readiness among White, Black, and Hispanic 6‐year‐olds, using the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study–Kindergarten Cohort (ECLS–K). It is critical to test the universality of such complex models, particularly given their implications for intervention, prevention, and public policy. Therefore this study asks: Do measures and models of low income and early school readiness indicators fit differently or similarly for White, Black, and Hispanic children? Measurement equivalence of material hardship, parent stress, parenting behaviors, child cognitive skills, and child social competence is first tested. Model equivalence is then tested by examining whether category membership in a race/ethnic group moderates associations between predictors and young children's school readiness.