Invariance of the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale Across Different Groups of Adolescents and Young Adults.

Anjalee Sharma,Rainier Masa

doi:10.1177/03795721211019634

Abstract

Background:Cross-group comparisons of household food insecurity and its associations using multiple-item scales assume that scale scores can be interpreted as identical across groups. However, scores should not be interpreted as identical across groups without evidence of measurement invariance. Noninvariant measures indicate that the underlying construct may be different across groups.Objective:To determine whether the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) is invariant across different groups of Ghanaian and South African youth aged 15 to 24.Methods:We analyzed cross-sectional quantitative data from 1437 and 4165 young South Africans and Ghanaians, respectively. Multi-group confirmatory factor analysis was used to examine whether the HFIAS was invariant across different groups of youth, including sex (male or female), age group (middle adolescence, late adolescence, or emerging adulthood), and receipt of child support grant (yes or no). We assessed 3 levels of invariance: configural, metric, and scalar. The model fit between nested models was compared using χ2 difference testing.Results:Invariance tests indicated that the HFIAS had configural, metric, and scalar invariance across different groups of Ghanaian and South African youth. Model fit statistics across all invariance levels indicated good fit of our hypothesized model with the observed data. χ2 difference testing results were not statistically significant across all nested models.Conclusions:Food insecurity, as measured by the HFIAS, meant the same thing for different groups of Ghanaian and South African youth. Evidence of invariance means that the HFIAS scores could be interpreted as identical across youth groups in our study.

Highlights

Food insecurity, defined as lack of access by individuals to adequate resources necessary to obtain appropriate foods for a nutritious diet,[1] is primarily measured using scales or sets of questionnaire items that ask respondents a series of questions about their experiences with obtaining food regularly
Invariance tests indicated that the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) had configural, metric, and scalar invariance across various Ghanaian and South African youth groups
The configural invariance finding suggests that the 1-factor model of the HFIAS applies to young men and young women in Ghana and South Africa, adolescents and young adults in Ghana and South Africa, and youth who received, did not receive, or did not know whether they received a CSG in South Africa

Summary

Introduction

Food insecurity, defined as lack of access by individuals to adequate resources necessary to obtain appropriate foods for a nutritious diet,[1] is primarily measured using scales or sets of questionnaire items that ask respondents a series of questions about their experiences with obtaining food regularly. The use of multi-item scales is often viewed as psychometrically reliable and valid, compared to single-item measures that may not adequately assess latent constructs or variables that cannot be observed directly, such as food access.[2] the use of multi-item experience-based food insecurity scales such as the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) and the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES) is common in assessing food insecurity in research and practice. Objective: To determine whether the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) is invariant across different groups of Ghanaian and South African youth aged 15 to 24. Results: Invariance tests indicated that the HFIAS had configural, metric, and scalar invariance across different groups of Ghanaian and South African youth. Evidence of invariance means that the HFIAS scores could be interpreted as identical across youth groups in our study

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion