Cross-cultural Comparative Studies Research Articles

Psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the WHOQOL-HIV BREF to assess quality of life among people living with HIV/AIDS: a cross-sectional study

ObjectivesThis study aims to assess the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the WHOQOL-HIV BREF.DesignCross-sectional study.SettingCenters for Disease Control and Prevention and infectious disease hospitals in three Chinese provinces.ParticipantsSample...

Can we really use available scales for child and adolescent psychopathology across cultures? A systematic review of cross-cultural measurement invariance data.

In this systematic review, we assessed available evidence for cross-cultural measurement invariance of assessment scales for child and adolescent psychopathology as an indicator of cross-cultural validity. A literature search was conducted using the Medline, PsychInfo, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases. Cross-cultural measurement invariance data was available for 26 scales. Based on the aggregation of the evidence from the studies under review, none of the evaluated scales have strong evidence for cross-cultural validity and suitability for cross-cultural comparison. A few of the studies showed a moderate level of measurement invariance for some scales (such as the Fear Survey Schedule for Children-Revised, Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children, Revised Child Anxiety and Depression Scale, Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale, Mood and Feelings Questionnaire, and Disruptive Behavior Rating Scale), which may make them suitable in cross-cultural comparative studies. The remainder of the scales either showed weak or outright lack of measurement invariance. This review showed only limited testing for measurement invariance across cultural groups of scales for pediatric psychopathology, with evidence of cross-cultural validity for only a few scales. This study also revealed a need to improve practices of statistical analysis reporting in testing measurement invariance. Implications for future research are discussed.

Cross-cultural Perspective on Websites of Higher Education in Austria and Russia

This article aims at conducting a cross-cultural comparison of university websites by taking the example of Austria and Russia. Numerous studies in the field of human–computer interaction (HCI) have revealed that cultural differences are likely to be present in website design. The rationale behind this article is twofold. On the one hand, the author pursues her personal interest in the field due to both her own cultural background and the fact that she studies in Austria. On the other hand, there is a scarcity of cross-cultural comparative studies of higher education institution (HEI) websites between Russia and Austria, and thus this study will contribute to the existing body of knowledge. Cultural differences in the design of HEI websites, identified within the scope of this study, may become a helpful tool which universities of both Austria and Russia could use for the English version of their websites in order to make them more culturally appropriate.

Cross cultural comparative education – fortifying preconceptions or transformation of knowledge?

The purpose of this article is to carry out a critical inquiry of comparative education by using an example of a comparative programme within kindergarten teacher education in Norway. The article discusses the inclination, in cross-cultural comparative studies, to emphasise cultural essentialism, to evaluate educational practice from a mono-cultural perspective and to overlook the interrelation between globalisation and local practices. The article further argues for promoting dialogism in order to understand local practices in cross-cultural comparative studies. Furthermore, the article underlines the importance of extending the understanding of context and problematising the position of the students in order to construct knowledge which challenges their preconceptions, and to contribute to transformation of knowledge.

Perceptions of leadership: a comparison of the views of physiotherapists in Canada and Ireland

Background: Culture has an effect on perceptions and enactment of leadership. At present there are no cross-cultural comparative studies of leadership in physiotherapy. This cross-cultural comparative study of Ireland and Canada will form the first step in taking a global view of leadership in physiotherapy.

Development and validation of the Somali WHOQOL-BREF among refugees living in the USA.

This study is the first translation and validation of the WHOQOL-BREF for general use in Somali refugee populations. A community sample of 303 Somali refugees living in the USA responded to the WHOQOL-BREF following translation, adaptation, and validation guidelines established by the World Health Organization. Psychometric properties of the quality of life instrument were assessed including tests of the four-domain factor structure using multiple regression and principal component analysis. Principal component analysis demonstrated an acceptable fit between PCA components and original WHOQOL-BREF domains. Four components had eigenvalues greater than one and explained 63.4% of the observed variance. Most scale items loaded like the original WHOQOL-BREF domains, with the notable difference among four items of physical health that loaded more strongly under the environment domain. Construct validity of the scale was confirmed by higher intercorrelations of each WHOQOL-BREF item with its intended domain (all r (2) > 0.50) than with other domains. Multiple regression analyses of the domain scores on overall quality of life (Q1) and health satisfaction (Q2) explained half of the observed variance in each measure. Item correlations showed good internal consistency (0.65 ≥ Cronbach's alpha ≤ 0.82). Validation of this first Somali version of the WHOQOL-BREF provides further evidence that this instrument can be a valid measure for cross-cultural comparative studies of quality of life. Policies that address health disparities can be more broadly evaluated if quality of life is systematically measured in the community. This is particularly important for evaluating policy impact and implications for refugee populations.

The role and role context of the Lebanese school principal

This study provides empirical data about the role and work context of the school principal in the Lebanon. The study applied grounded theory methods in collecting and analysing the data. The data were collected through a series of open-ended interviews with 53 secondary school principals, and focus group interviews with 8 principals from public as well as private schools. The results show that Lebanese school principals, despite a wide variety of backgrounds, share a core set of role expectations. Discussion of the results compares the role and role demands of the Lebanese school principal to what has been reported in empirical studies of principals in Western countries. While the results reveal many role similarities, it is also clear that the socio-political and cultural conditions in Lebanon shape the role and role demands of Lebanese school principalship. In contrast to their Western counterparts, principals in Lebanon: (1) give limited attention to the instructional dimension of the role; (2) assume limited responsibilities as the agent for school change and improvement; (3) adopt an authoritarian orientation in enacting the role; and (4) hold a highly idiosyncratic ‘craft’ conception of the work of the principal. The study’s results reinforce the need for more in-depth cross-cultural comparative studies of education professionals.

Cross-cultural Equivalency of the California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory

This study describes the cross-cultural applicability of a multidimensional inventory of students’ evaluation of critical thinking dispositions (California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory). The goal was to assess the cross-cultural psychometric equivalency of the CCTDI through testing measurement invariance across American and Turkish linguistic populations. Based on the data from 583 Turkish students and 448 American students from different teacher education programs, the translated Turkish version and the original English version of the CCTDI displayed positive psychometric properties, thus supporting the applicability of the CCTDI in a Turkish educational context with alpha coefficients ranging from .81 to .90 for the sub-scales of the CCTDI Turkish and ranging from .85 to .91 for the sub-scales of the CCTDI English. Results also supported high content validity across cultural versions of the inventory with minimum content validity indices of .81 and .97 for both the Turkish and American versions of the inventory, respectively. However, a cross-cultural comparison of the factorial structure produced a poor fit of the hypothesized multidimensional model of CCTDI to the combined sample. Further analysis, based on the modification indices, supported the use of a four-factor model with reduced items for cross-cultural comparative research studies. Reasons for poor model fit and non-invariance across cultural groups were elaborated.

A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Singaporean and Taiwanese Eighth Graders' Science Learning Self-Efficacy from a Multi-Dimensional Perspective

Due to the scarcity of cross-cultural comparative studies in exploring students' self-efficacy in science learning, this study attempted to develop a multi-dimensional science learning self-efficacy (SLSE) instrument to measure 316 Singaporean and 303 Taiwanese eighth graders' SLSE and further to examine the differences between the two student groups. Moreover, within-culture comparisons were made in terms of gender. The results showed that, first, the SLSE instrument was valid and reliable for measuring the Singaporean and Taiwanese students' SLSE. Second, through a two-way multivariate analysis of variance analysis (nationality by gender), the main result indicated that the SLSE held by the Singaporean eighth graders was significantly higher than that of their Taiwanese counterparts in all dimensions, including ‘conceptual understanding and higher-order cognitive skills’, ‘practical work (PW)’, ‘everyday application’, and ‘science communication’. In addition, the within-culture gender comparisons indicated that the male Singaporean students tended to possess higher SLSE than the female students did in all SLSE dimensions except for the ‘PW’ dimension. However, no gender differences were found in the Taiwanese sample. The findings unraveled in this study were interpreted from a socio-cultural perspective in terms of the curriculum differences, societal expectations of science education, and educational policies in Singapore and Taiwan.

Women's Sexual Strategies: The Evolution of Long-Term Bonds and Extrapair Sex

Abstract Because of their heavy obligatory investment in offspring and limited offspring number, ancestral women faced the challenge of securing sufficient material resources for reproduction and gaining access to good genes. We review evidence indicating that selection produced two overlapping suites of psychological adaptations to address these challenges. The first set involves coupling—the formation of social partnerships for providing biparental care. The second set involves dual mating, a strategy in which women form long-term relationships with investing partners, while surreptitiously seeking good genes from extrapair mates. The sources of evidence we review include hunter-gather studies, comparative nonhuman studies, cross-cultural studies, and evidence of shifts in women's desires across the ovulatory cycle. We argue that the evidence poses a challenge to some existing theories of human mating and adds to our understanding of the subtlety of women's sexual strategies.

Cross‐cultural validity of the Individualised Care Scale – a Rasch model analysis

The aim of this study was to investigate, using Rasch model analysis, the measurement invariance of the item ratings of the Individualised Care Scale. Evidence of reliability is needed in cross-cultural comparative studies. To be used in different cultures and languages, the items must function the same way. A methodological and comparative design. Secondary analysis of data, gathered in 2005-2006 from a cross-cultural survey using the Individualised Care Scale from Finnish, Greek, Swedish and English predischarge hospitalised orthopaedic and trauma patients (n = 1093), was used. The Rasch model, which produces calibrations (item locations and rank) and item fit statistics, was computed using the Winstep program. The rank of average Individualised Care Scale item calibrations (-2·26-1·52) followed a generally similar trend (Infit ≤ 1·3), but slight differences in the item rank by country were found and some item misfit was identified within the same items. There was some variation in the order and location of some Individualised Care Scale items for individual countries, but the overall pattern of item calibration was generally corresponding. The Rasch model provided information about the appropriateness, sensitivity and item function in different cultures providing more in-depth information about the psychometric properties of the Individualised Care Scale instrument. Comparison of the four versions of the Individualised Care Scale - patient revealed general correspondence in the item calibration patterns although slight differences in the rank order of the items were found. Some items showed also a slight misfit. Based on these results, the phrasing and targeting of some items should be considered. The Individualised Care Scale - Patient version can be used in cross-cultural studies for the measurement of patients' perceptions of individualised care. Information obtained with the use of the Individualised Care Scale in clinical nursing practice is important, and valid measures are needed in evaluating patients' assessment of individualised care, one indicator of care quality.

Traditional food and herbal uses of wild plants in the ancient South-Slavic diaspora of Mundimitar/Montemitro (Southern Italy)

BackgroundIn Europe, only a limited number of cross-cultural comparative field studies or meta-analyses have been focused on the dynamics through which folk plant knowledge changes over space and time, while a few studies have contributed to the understanding of how plant uses change among newcomers. Nevertheless, ethnic minority groups and/or linguistic “isles” in Southern and Eastern Europe may provide wonderful arenas for understanding the various factors that influence changes in plant uses.MethodsA field ethnobotanical study was carried out in Mundimitar (Montemitro in Italian), a village of approx. 450 inhabitants, located in the Molise region of South-Eastern Italy. Mundimitar is a South-Slavic community, composed of the descendants of people who migrated to the area during the first half of the 14th century, probably from the lower Neretva valley (Dalmatia and Herzegovina regions). Eighteen key informants (average age: 63.7) were selected using the snowball sampling technique and participated in in-depth interviews regarding their Traditional Knowledge (TK) of the local flora.ResultsAlthough TK on wild plants is eroded in Montemitro among the youngest generations, fifty-seven taxa (including two cultivated species, which were included due to their unusual uses) were quoted by the study participants. Half of the taxa have correspondence in the Croatian and Herzegovinian folk botanical nomenclature, and the other half with South-Italian folk plant names. A remarkable link to the wild vegetable uses recorded in Dalmatia is evident. A comparison of the collected data with the previous ethnobotanical data of the Molise region and of the entire Italian Peninsula pointed out a few uses that have not been recorded in Italy thus far: the culinary use of boiled black bryony (Tamus communis) shoots in sauces and also on pasta; the use of squirting cucumber ( Ecballium elaterium) juice for treating malaria in humans; the aerial parts of the elderberry tree ( Sambucus nigra) for treating erysipelas in pigs; the aerial parts of pellitory ( Parietaria judaica) in decoctions for treating haemorrhoids.ConclusionsThe fact that half of the most salient species documented in our case study – widely available both in Molise and in Dalmatia and Herzegovina – retain a Slavic name could indicate that they may have also been used in Dalmatia and Herzegovina before the migration took place. However, given the occurrence of several South-Italian plant names and uses, also a remarkable acculturation process affected the Slavic community of Montemitro during these last centuries. Future directions of research should try to simultaneously compare current ethnobotanical knowledge of both migrated communities and their counterparts in the areas of origin.

Culturally Different and Yet Alike— Introduction to the Special Issue “Early Adolescent Health in Cross-National Perspective”

This introductory editorial highlights the importance of cross-cultural comparative studies for research, policy making, and prevention efforts in order to improve the lives of young people. It reviews the paucity of large-scale cross-cultural studies that investigate young people’s health. These concern in particular challenges in establishing not only collaborations but also the application of sophisticated quantitative methods that can address the nested characteristics of cross-cultural data. Interestingly, findings from the five articles included in this special issue reveal far more cultural similarities than differences. For instance, the impact and relationship that parents and peers exert on young adolescents appears consistent across countries. In line with two invited commentaries, recommendations for prevention and policy making are provided.

An ethnobotanical survey of the Gollak region, Kosovo

An ethnobotanical field study focused on traditional uses of medicinal plants, wild food plants, and mushrooms was conducted in 37 villages in the Gollak region of eastern Kosovo. Interviews with 66 elderly informants were conducted using standard ethnobotanical methods. The uses of 92 vascular plants and 6 mushrooms species belonging to 47 different families were recorded. Mainly infusions and decoctions were quoted as folk medicinal preparations and the most commonly quoted plant medicinal uses referred to diseases of the respiratory system, skin, and gastrointestinal tract. Comparison of the collected data with the ethnobotanical findings of previously conducted studies in the surrounding Western Balkan areas showed that, even if more than the half of Gollak’s wild botanical genera quoted as medicines used are the same in Serbia and in Northern Albania, commonalities between the actual medicinal plant applications recorded in the present study and those reported for the other areas are extremely scarce. This may confirm the richness of the bio-cultural heritage of the Western Balkan region and the urgent need to conduct cross-cultural comparative field ethnobiological studies.

Validation of the WHOQOL-HIV BREF among HIV-infected patients in Taiwan

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the quality of life (QOL) of an individual is essentially defined as the subjective evaluation by such individuals of their own personal life embedded within the context of their culture and values. In the present study, we set out to examine the reliability and validity of the WHOQOL-HIV BREF, a newly-developed, multi-dimensional instrument comprising 31 items designed to assess the QOL of people in Taiwan infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). We collected data on a total of 680 people in Taiwan infected with HIV; these study participants were found to have a mean age of 36.26±10.1 years. Based on our assessment of the psychometric (reliability and validity) properties of the WHOQOL-HIV BREF, we found that the internal consistency (Cronbach's α) ranged between 0.67 and 0.80 across the six domains of physical health, level of independence, psychological health, spirituality, social relations, and environmental health. We also found that the multi-dimensional instrument demonstrated good content, concurrent, and known-group validity, with the results of the construct validity further revealing that the original six-domain structure model was acceptable. The findings of the present study provide strong evidence in support of both the reliability and validity of the WHOQOL-HIV BREF for widespread use in the assessment of quality of life among HIV-infected patients in Taiwan, with the original factor structure of the instrument having been found to be appropriately valid for patients of a Chinese cultural background. We therefore contribute to the evidence on the cultural relevance of the WHOQOL-HIV BREF as a valid measure for cross-cultural comparative studies on QOL.

Is There a Sensitive Period in Human Incest Avoidance?

Many studies support the proposition that early cosocialization with opposite-sex children has the effect of inhibiting later mutual sexual attraction, but the existence of a period in the life cycle in which individuals are sensitive to the effect of early cosocialization has been a matter of controversy. Drawing on earlier traditional psychological research, and on more recent work guided by parental investment theory, we hypothesized that only for maternal perinatal association (MPA)-absent males a less-than- around-three-years age difference with the sister can predict stronger aversion to sibling incest. The results corroborated the hypothesis. The results can be interpreted as support for the existence of a sensitive period as well as for the potent role of MPA. Cross-cultural comparative studies were called on to further test the hypothesis.

Nurses’ perceptions of individualized care: an international comparison

This paper is a report of a study of internationally-based differences in nurses' perceptions of individualized care in orthopaedic surgical in-patient wards. Individualized care is valued in healthcare policy, practice and ethical statements as an indicator of care quality. However, nurses' assessments of individualized care are limited and comparative cross-cultural studies on individualized nursing care are lacking. A descriptive comparative survey was used to sample orthopaedic surgical nurses (n = 1163) working in 91 inpatient wards in 34 acute hospitals in Finland, Cyprus, Greece, Portugal, Sweden, Turkey and the United States of America. Data were collected between March and November 2009 using the Individualized Care Scale-Nurse and analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Nurses in different countries perceived that they supported patients' individuality generally and provided individualized care during nursing activities. Although the highest scores were in support of patients' individuality in the clinical situation both through nursing provision and nurses' perceptions of individuality, there were between-country differences within these scores. Generally, the Greek and American nurses gave the highest scores and the Turkish, Cypriot and Portuguese nurses the lowest. Between-country differences found may be attributed to differing roles of nurses, care processes, healthcare systems and/or the ways nursing care is defined and organized. As this was the first time the Individualized Care Scale-Nurse was used in an international context, the results are formative and indicate the need to continue studies in this area.

Validation of the medical outcomes study HIV (MOS-HIV) health survey among HIV-infected patients in Taiwan

To examine both the reliability and the validity of the 'Medical Outcomes Study HIV' (MOS-HIV) health survey among HIV-infected patients in Taiwan. Data were collected from 619 HIV-infected outpatients, with the reliability and the validity of the MOS-HIV survey subsequently being examined by multi-trait scaling techniques, internal consistency, convergent validity, known-group validity and factorial validity. The MOS-HIV health survey was found to have excellent success rates in the item-consistency and discriminant-validity tests, as well as good convergent validity and known-group validity. An acceptable fit was found for three of the four indices in the original two-factor model (non-normed fit index = 0.92, comparative fit index = 0.94 and standardized root mean squared residual = 0.056). The findings of the present study provide strong evidence in support of the reliability and validity of the MOS-HIV health survey for the assessment of quality of life among HIV-infected patients in Taiwan. We find that the original factor structure of the MOS-HIV survey remains valid for patients from Chinese cultural backgrounds. This study therefore contributes to the existing evidence within the extant literature on the cultural relevance of the MOS-HIV health survey (a measure originally developed within a Western culture) as a valid measure for cross-cultural comparative studies on health-related quality of life.

Adapting the Individualized Care Scale for cross‐cultural comparison

Cross-cultural comparative studies using reliable and valid instruments can increase awareness of the differences and similarities between health worker's ability to respond to patients' individual needs within different health systems. This will enable a better understanding of cultural perspectives in individualized nursing care. To describe the translation and adaptation process of the Individualized Care Scale (ICS) and examine its reliability and validity in a cross-cultural study. A cross-sectional comparative study. Twenty-seven orthopaedic and trauma in-patient units at 14 hospitals in 5 countries. A total of 1126 patients were included in the study: Finland (n = 425), Greece (n = 315), Sweden (n = 218), UK (n = 135) and USA (n = 33). A systematic forward- and back-translation procedure using bilingual techniques, a committee approach, pretest techniques and pilot testing were used with a convenience sample to produce a valid ICS for each participating group. Psychometric evaluation of the adapted ICS was based on means, SD, missing data analysis, Cronbach's alpha coefficients and average inter-item correlations. Construct validity was examined using sub-scale correlations to total scales and principal components analysis. The use of the range of options and the sub-scale mean scores ranging from 2.72 to 4.30 demonstrated the sensitivity of the scale. Cronbach's alpha coefficients (0.77-0.97) and average inter-item correlations (0.37-0.77) were acceptable. The sub-scale correlations to total scales were high (0.83-0.97). The underlying theoretical construct of the ICS was demonstrated by the explained variances ranging from 58% to 79%. The ICS shows promise as a tool for evaluating individualized care in European cultures. The international expansion of an existing instrument developed for one country facilitates comparative studies across countries. There is a need to further test the construct validity and appropriateness of the ICS in different settings in European and nonwestern cultures.

Isolating Cultural and National Influence on Value and Ethics: A Test of Competing Hypotheses

We live in an increasingly globalizing world, in which countries are closely linked by international trade and investment ties. Cross-cultural comparative studies of national values and ethics have attracted growing research interest in recent years, because shared practices, values and ethical standards depend on shared beliefs. However, the findings of such studies have been unable to reach a consensus on the impact of culture on ethics-related attitudes and behavior. Empirically, many cross-cultural differences reported by previous studies might actually stem from cross national differences. In order to partially fill this gap, this study advocates an analytical framework that isolates the role of cultural and national differences in order to test their relationship to individual level variables. Within this framework, we test competing hypotheses based on both cultural and national contexts by comparing groups of Chinese and American respondents together with a bridging group of Chinese Chinese-Americans. Theoretically, this contextual approach helps resolve the debate on the role of culture, by showing that culture plays a far more important role in shaping value orientations than the national background. Specifically, the two ethnic Chinese groups had many cultural values in common, and differed significantly from the Caucasian group. Implications are discussed.