Racial/Ethnic Differences in Responses to the Everyday Discrimination Scale: A Differential Item Functioning Analysis
Open accessAbstract
The authors examined the impact of race/ethnicity on responses to the Everyday Discrimination Scale, one of the most widely used discrimination scales in epidemiologic and public health research. Participants were 3,295 middle-aged US women (African-American, Caucasian, Chinese, Hispanic, and Japanese) from the Study of Women's Health Across the Nation (SWAN) baseline examination (1996-1997). Multiple-indicator, multiple-cause models were used to examine differential item functioning (DIF) on the Everyday Discrimination Scale by race/ethnicity. After adjustment for age, education, and language of interview, meaningful DIF was observed for 3 (out of 10) items: "receiving poorer service in restaurants or stores," "being treated as if you are dishonest," and "being treated with less courtesy than other people" (all P's < 0.001). Consequently, the "profile" of everyday discrimination differed slightly for women of different racial/ethnic groups, with certain "public" experiences appearing to have more salience for African-American and Chinese women and "dishonesty" having more salience for racial/ethnic minority women overall. "Courtesy" appeared to have more salience for Hispanic women only in comparison with African-American women. Findings suggest that the Everyday Discrimination Scale could potentially be used across racial/ethnic groups as originally intended. However, researchers should use caution with items that demonstrated DIF.
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- Authors
- Lewis, T. T., Yang, F. M., Jacobs, E. A., & Fitchett, G.
- Affiliations
- Yale University (US)
- Harvard University (US)
- University of Wisconsin–Madison (US)
- Corresponding author
- Lewis, T. T.
- Venue
- American Journal of Epidemiology
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2012-02-03
- Volume
- 175
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 391-401
- ISSN
- 0002-9262 (ISSN-L)
- 1476-6256
- PMC
- PMC3282874
- OpenAlex
- W2100390472
- Cited by
- 203
- References
- 62
- Citations by year
- 2026: 14 · 2025: 19 · 2024: 13 · 2023: 17 · 2022: 24 · 2021: 31 · 2020: 16 · 2019: 15 · 2018: 8 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 11 · 2014: 8 · 2013: 8 · 2012: 3
- FWCI
- 31.52
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- American Journal of Epidemiology (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (RR024139, AG012535, NR004061, AG012531)
- Brigham and Women's Hospital
- Massachusetts General Hospital
- Yale University
- Kaiser Permanente
- University of Wisconsin-Madison
- University of Pittsburgh
- Rush University
- New England Research Institutes
- National Institutes of Health (3u01ag012535-03s2)
- University of California, Los Angeles
- University of California, Davis
- School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Madison
- National Institute on Aging (U01-AG-012535, AG012531, U01AG012539, U01AG012505, AG 012535, AG012495, AG 012554, U01AG012553, NR004061, U01AG012495, AG 012505, AG 012546, AG012553, U01AG012554, U01AG012546, U01AG012531, AG012539)
- National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (AG012535, AG012539, AG012554, AG012531, AG012546, HL092591, NR004061, K01HL092591, AG012495, AG012505, AG012553)
- National Institute of Nursing Research (AG012535, NR-004061, U01NR004061)
- National Center for Research Resources (RR024139, UL1RR024139)
- Office of Research on Women's Health (AG012495, AG012539, AG012546, AG012554, AG012535, AG012531, NR004061, AG012553, AG012505)
- 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 › Health › Health disparities and outcomes
- Keywords
- Everyday Discrimination Scale, differential item functioning, racial and ethnic differences, everyday discrimination, African American women, Hispanic women, Chinese women, Japanese women, middle-aged women, Study of Women's Health Across the Nation
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Ethnicity, Female, Humans, Middle Aged, Models, Theoretical, Prejudice, Psychometrics, Surveys and Questionnaires, United States, Epidemiologic Research Design, Bias, Women's Health, Racial Groups
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