Identifying Cultural Differences in Responses to Stress-Related Measures in German and Singaporean Social Work Students. CEME Technical Report. CEMETR-2023-01

To test hypotheses in cross-cultural studies, it is necessary to investigate whether results might be affected systematically by language or cultural effects. In this paper the results of differential item functioning (DIF) analyses for the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), the Preventive Resources Inventory (PRI), and the Brief COPE are presented. Data from N = 860 German and Singapore social work students were analyzed using the Rasch Partial Credit Model by comparing item difficulties. Large DIF was found in 3 of the 10 items from the PSS, in 15 of 82 items from the PRI and in 5 out of 28 items from the Brief COPE. Implications for the use of the measures are discussed.