Psychometric properties of the childhood executive functioning inventory (CHEXI): A confirmatory factor analysis and measurement invariance by sex and age in Iranian children

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study aimed to examine the psychometric properties, factor structure, and measurement invariance of the Persian version of the Childhood Executive functioning Inventory (CHEXI). Participants were 1076 typically developing children, 6- to 12-years old (M age =  9.2 years, SD age =  1.96); females (52.1%) recruited from 17 provinces and 30 children with attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) (females, % 36) and 30 children with specific learning disability (SLD) (females, % 40). Children's parents completed CHEXI and the Barkley Deficits in Executive Functioning Scale-Children and Adolescents (BDEFS-CA). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) supported the two-factor structure, including (1) working memory and (2) inhibition, which had been identified previously. The Results showed that the CHEXI had high internal consistency and adequate test-retest reliability. The CHEXI was found to be invariant by sex (female vs. male) and age (7 age groups) across all factors. Lastly, the CHEXI demonstrated adequate convergent validity with the BDEFS-CA and known-group validity. We highlighted the implications of these findings for using CHEXI in typically developing children and clinical samples, along with directions for future research.