Open AccessThe equivalence of measures on the Connectedness to Nature Scale: A comparison between ordinal methods of DIF detection
Author(s) -
Laura Pasca,
María Teresa Coello,
Juan Ignacio Aragonés,
Cynthia McPherson Frantz
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0207739
Subject(s) - equivalence (formal languages) , differential item functioning , ordinal data , social connectedness , ordinal scale , scale (ratio) , psychology , level of measurement , measurement invariance , rating scale , mathematics , econometrics , statistics , psychometrics , social psychology , item response theory , confirmatory factor analysis , geography , pure mathematics , structural equation modeling , cartography
The Connectedness to Nature Scale has been used in many different countries and settings. However, no one has yet tested the equivalence of these measures. Equivalence of measures has been the subject of much research in recent years, due to the importance of measuring in the same way when comparing between different groups. The present work studied the differential item functioning (DIF) of the CNS in a Spanish group and a North American group of respondents, using two different methods of detecting DIF. It also evaluated the overall equivalence of the scale. The results reveal differential functioning in most items, and only configural invariance is given. Thus, we suggest a reappraisal of the scale when comparing results from different countries since otherwise the conclusions drawn might be incorrect.