Revisiting the Academic Self-Concept Transcultural Measurement Model: The Case of Spain and China

Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: [email protected]; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us

Y

23

Academic Achievement; Self Concept; Psychometrics; Validity; Reliability; Cross Cultural Studies; Foreign Countries; Self Concept Measures; Questionnaires; Structural Equation Models; Comparative Analysis; Cultural Differences; Adolescents

Spain; China

10.1111/bjep.12635

0007-0998
2044-8279

Background: Modelling academic self-concept through second-order factors or bifactor structures is an important issue with substantive and practical implications; besides, the bifactor model has not been analysed with a Chinese sample and cross-cultural studies in the academic self-concept are scarce. Likewise, latent structure validity evidence using network psychometrics has not been carried out. Aims: The aim of this study is twofold: to analyse (1) the internal structure of ASC through the Self-Description Questionnaire II-Short (SDQII-S) in Chinese and Spanish samples using two approaches, structural equation modelling and network psychometrics conducting an exploratory graph analysis; and (2) the measurement invariance of the best model across countries and investigate the cross-cultural differences in ASC. Sample: The sample was composed by 651 adolescents. Seven models of ASC were tested. Results: Results supported the multi-dimensional nature of the data as well as the reliability. The best-fitted model for the two subsamples was the three-factor ESEM model, but only the configural invariance of this model was supported across countries. The graph function shows that the "school" dimension appears more related to the "verbal" factor in the Spanish subsample and to the "math" dimension in the Chinese subsample. Likewise, the relationship between "verbal" and "math" factors in Spanish students is non-existent, but this connection is more relevant for Chinese students. Conclusion: These two differences may be behind the difficulty in finding invariance using SEM models. It is a question of the construct's nature, less related to analytical phenomena, and deserves deeper discussion.

As Provided

2024

EJ1410965