Cross-cultural measurement invariance of the Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionnaire-Short form across ten countries: the application of Bayesian approximate measurement invariance

Z. Bagheri*, P. Chamanpara, P. Jafari, Y.P.S. Balhara, S. Arya, R. Ransing, A. Doric, R. Knez, T.V.V. Thi, T.N. Huong, H.Y. Kafali, G. Erzin, Z. Vally, M.R.R. Chowdhury, P. Sharma, R. Shakya, L.A.M. Campos, A.R. Szczegielniak, D. Stevanovic

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Background The Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionnaire-Short Form (Q-LES-Q-SF) is the most frequently used generic quality of life (QOL) measure in many countries and cultures worldwide. However, no single study has been carried out to investigate whether this questionnaire performs similarly across diverse cultures/countries. Accordingly, this study aimed to assess the cross-cultural measurement invariance of the Q-LES-Q-SF across ten different countries. Methods The Q-LES-Q-SF was administrated to a sample of 2822 university students from ten countries: Bangladesh, Brazil, Croatia, India, Nepal, Poland, Serbia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and Vietnam. The Bayesian approximate measurement invariance approach was used to assess the measurement invariance of the Q-LES-Q-SF. Results Approximate measurement invariance did not hold across the countries for the Q-LES-Q-SF, with only two out of 14 items being non-invariant; namely items related to doing household and leisure time activities. Conclusions Our findings did not support the cross-cultural measurement invariance of the Q-LES-Q-SF; thus, considerable caution is warranted when comparing QOL scores across different countries with this measure. Item rewording and adaptation along with calibrating non-invariant items may narrow these differences and help researchers to create an invariant questionnaire for reliable and valid QOL comparisons across different countries.
Original languageEnglish
Article number160
Number of pages10
JournalBMC Psychology
Volume10
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 24 Jun 2022

Keywords

  • Cross-cultural
  • Measurement invariance
  • Quality of life
  • Psychiatry
  • Mental health
  • SELF-REPORT
  • FACTORIAL INVARIANCE
  • CHILDREN
  • VALIDITY
  • VERSION
  • WHOQOL

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