The multigroup ethnic identity measure—revised: measurement invariance across racial and ethnic groups
Open accessAbstract
The Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure-Revised (MEIM-R), a brief instrument assessing affiliation with one's ethnic group, is a promising advance in the ethnic identity literature. However, equivalency of its measurement properties across specific racial and ethnic groups should be confirmed before using it in diverse samples. We examined (a) the psychometric properties of the MEIM-R, including factor structure, measurement invariance, and internal consistency reliability, and (b) levels of and differences in ethnic identity across multiple racial and ethnic groups and subgroups. Asian (n = 630), Black/African American (n = 58), Hispanic (n = 240), multiethnic (n = 160), and White (n = 375) women completed the MEIM-R as part of the "Gestational diabetes' Effect on Moms" diabetes prevention trial in the Kaiser Permanente Northern California health care setting (N = 1,463; M age = 32.5 years, SD = 4.9). Multiple-groups confirmatory factor analyses provided provisional evidence of measurement invariance, i.e., an equal, correlated 2-factor structure, equal factor loadings, and equal item intercepts across racial and ethnic groups. Latent factor means for the 2 MEIM-R subscales, exploration and commitment, differed across groups; effect sizes ranging from small to large generally supported the notion of ethnic identity as more salient among people of color. Pending replication, good psychometric properties in this large and diverse sample of women support the future use of the MEIM-R. Preliminary evidence of measurement invariance suggests that the MEIM-R could be used to measure and compare ethnic identity across multiple racial and ethnic groups.
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The MEIM-R has a correlated two-factor structure with measurement invariance across Whites, African Americans, Hispanics, Asians, and multi-ethnic respondents.
“The MEIM-R has a correlated two-factor structure with measurement invariance across Whites, African Americans, Hispanics, Asians, and multi-ethnic respondents (Brown et al., 2014).”
From Assessment of culture and environment in the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development Study: Rationale, description of measures, and early data (2018) · cites this paper as Brown et al., 2014
The Discussion reports that a correlated two-factor model fit fairly well and that analyses found provisional evidence of measurement invariance across the five named groups. The claim omits that qualification and presents the finding as established beyond the study’s sample of women; the authors say replication is needed. Page numbers are not provided in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.86)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredResearch has indicated good reliability for the MEIM-R, with internal consistency (Cronbach's α) ranging from 0.76 to 0.91 for the two subscales and 0.81-0.89 for the overall scale.
“Research has indicated good reliability, with internal consistency (Cronbach’s α) ranging from 0.76 to 0.91 for the two subscales and 0.81–0.89 for the overall scale (Phinney and Ong, 2007; Yoon, 2011; Brown et al., 2014).”
From Assessment of culture and environment in the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development Study: Rationale, description of measures, and early data (2018) · cites this paper as Brown et al., 2014
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“surement invariance across Whites, African Americans, Hispanics, Asians, and multi-ethnic respondents (Brown et al., 2014).”
BackgroundMethod
- Authors
- Brown, S. D., Unger Hu, K. A., Mevi, A. A., Hedderson, M. M., Shan, J., Quesenberry, C. P., & Ferrara, A.
- Affiliations
- Kaiser Permanente (US)
- Venue
- Journal of Counseling Psychology
- Published
- 2014-01
- Volume
- 61
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 154-161
- ISSN
- 0022-0167 (ISSN-L)
- 1939-2168
- PMC
- PMC4110058
- OpenAlex
- W1976459851
- Cited by
- 137
- References
- 13
- Citations by year
- 2026: 16 · 2025: 13 · 2024: 11 · 2023: 14 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 25 · 2018: 8 · 2017: 7 · 2016: 8 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 2
- FWCI
- 15.49
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Journal of Counseling Psychology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (R01 HS019367)
- National Institutes of Health (P30 DK092924)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Racial and Ethnic Identity Research
- Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Management Science and Operations Research › Psychometric Methodologies and Testing
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
- Keywords
- ethnic identity, measurement invariance, racial and ethnic groups, psychometric properties, factor structure, gestational diabetes mellitus, women of color, Kaiser Permanente Northern California
- MeSH terms
- Asian, Black or African American, Ethnicity, Female, Hispanic or Latino, Humans, Pregnancy, Psychometrics, Surveys and Questionnaires, Social Identification, Reproducibility of Results, Diabetes, Gestational, White People
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