TY - JOUR
T1 - Measuring individualism and collectivism
T2 - The importance of considering differential components, reference groups, and measurement invariance
AU - Chen, Fang Fang
AU - West, Stephen
N1 - Funding Information:
This paper is partially based on the first author’s dissertation. The first author would like to thank committee members Nancy Felipe Russo, Leona Aiken, Douglass Kenrick, and Roger Millsap for their invaluable support to the first author. Appreciations go to a group of colleagues and friends who have contributed to this project: Jean Denious, Petia Petrova, Josh Aickerman, Deng Shiying, and Yang Yanyun. The authors are especially grateful to Ren Yuanbiao and a number of anonymous friends for helping data collection in China. We are also thankful to Beth Morling for her thoughtful comments on an earlier version of this paper. This project was supported by the Society of Multivariate Experimental Psychology Dissertation Award and Arizona State University Graduate College Dissertation Award.
Copyright:
Copyright 2008 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2008/4
Y1 - 2008/4
N2 - A new instrument of individualism and collectivism (I/C) was developed and three key issues in I/C measurement were addressed: differentiating components of I/C, understanding the impact of reference groups, and testing of measurement invariance. Three components of I/C were assessed in China and the U.S.: independence, competitiveness, and uniqueness for individualism; considering of one's decisions on others, sharing of positive outcomes, and sharing of negative outcomes for collectivism. Collectivism was measured with respect to parents, friends, and general others. Results indicate that Chinese participants are less unique but more independent and competitive than their counterparts in the U.S. The expected cultural difference is found for parent collectivism across all three components and for sharing negative outcome with respect to all three reference groups. These results suggest that individualism is a multidimensional construct, whereas the dimensionality of collectivism appears to be a function of social distance. Measurement invariance was tested at configural, factor loading, and intercept levels for all components of I/C.
AB - A new instrument of individualism and collectivism (I/C) was developed and three key issues in I/C measurement were addressed: differentiating components of I/C, understanding the impact of reference groups, and testing of measurement invariance. Three components of I/C were assessed in China and the U.S.: independence, competitiveness, and uniqueness for individualism; considering of one's decisions on others, sharing of positive outcomes, and sharing of negative outcomes for collectivism. Collectivism was measured with respect to parents, friends, and general others. Results indicate that Chinese participants are less unique but more independent and competitive than their counterparts in the U.S. The expected cultural difference is found for parent collectivism across all three components and for sharing negative outcome with respect to all three reference groups. These results suggest that individualism is a multidimensional construct, whereas the dimensionality of collectivism appears to be a function of social distance. Measurement invariance was tested at configural, factor loading, and intercept levels for all components of I/C.
KW - Cultural differences
KW - Measurement invariance
KW - Measurement of individualism and collectivism
KW - Multi-group confirmatory factor analysis
KW - Relational groups
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jrp.2007.05.006
DO - 10.1016/j.jrp.2007.05.006
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:41649115202
SN - 0092-6566
VL - 42
SP - 259
EP - 294
JO - Journal of Research in Personality
JF - Journal of Research in Personality
IS - 2
ER -