Comparability of Formative Measures in Cross-national Surveys
Date:
25/05/2021
Organised by:
University of Edinburgh
Presenter:
Professor Boris Sokolov
Level:
Entry (no or almost no prior knowledge)
Contact:
Research Training Centre, sps.rtc@ed.ac.uk
Venue: Online
Description:
Political and social scientists, employing surveys in their research, often utilize single questions or multi-item scales to measure complex theoretical constructs, such as values, attitudes, personality traits, or beliefs. In comparative contexts, it is of essential importance to ensure that a specific measurement instrument functions equivalently in different countries (or other culturally dissimilar units). “Functions equivalently” typically means that the measurement instrument provides equivalent numerical scores for individuals living in different environments but sharing identical positions on the measured construct. This property, generally known as measurement invariance/equivalence, is the key prerequisite of any meaningful cross-country comparison.
Measurement invariance constitutes an important research field in the modern survey methodology, but it is typically discussed from the perspective of so called reflective measurement models, which tie measurement validity (including comparability) of complex multi-item constructs to the strength (and also cross-national similarity) of correlations between their observed indicators. Factor analysis and its extension, Multiple Group Confirmatory Factor Analysis (MGCFA), specifically devised for comparative analysis, are perhaps the most widely known (and used) members of this family of measurement methods. Yet, there exist another broad group of powerful measurement approaches – so called formative measures, which do not require strong correlations between different indicators of the same construct and still allow for relatively accurate measurement of important attitudinal constructs.
The key goal of this seminar is to introduce the latter measurement approach, which remains largely unknown to the political science community, with a specific focus on its advantages and disadvantages for the purposes of cross-national research.
Cost:
Free
Website and registration:
Region:
Scotland
Keywords:
Survey and Questionnaire Design
Related publications and presentations:
Survey and Questionnaire Design