Implications of Absence of Measurement Invariance for Detecting Sex Limitation and Genotype by Environment Interaction
- 1 June 2004
- journal article
- Published by Cambridge University Press (CUP) in Twin Research
- Vol. 7 (03), 292-298
- https://doi.org/10.1375/twin.7.3.292
Abstract
Using univariate sum scores in genetic studies of twin data is common practice. This practice precludes an investigation of the measurement model relating the individual items to an underlying factor. Absence of measurement invariance across a grouping variable such as gender or environmental exposure refers to group differences with respect to the measurement model. It is shown that a decomposition of a sum score into genetic and environmental variance components leads to path coefficients of the additive genetic factor that are biased differentially across groups if individual items are non-invariant. The arising group differences in path coefficients are identical to what is known as “scalar sex limitation” when gender is the grouping variable, or as “gene by environment interaction” when environmental exposure is the grouping variable. In both cases the interpretation would be in terms of a group-specific effect size of the genetic factor. This interpretation may be incorrect if individual items are non-invariant.Keywords
This publication has 9 references indexed in Scilit:
- Variance Components Models for Gene–Environment Interaction in Quantitative Trait Locus Linkage AnalysisTwin Research, 2002
- Variance Components Models for Gene–Environment Interaction in Twin AnalysisTwin Research, 2002
- Confirmatory factor analysis models of factorial invariance: A multifaceted approachStructural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 1994
- Measurement invariance, factor analysis and factorial invariancePsychometrika, 1993
- Subpopulation invariance of patterns in covariance matricesBritish Journal of Mathematical and Statistical Psychology, 1993
- Methodology for Genetic Studies of Twins and FamiliesPublished by Springer Science and Business Media LLC ,1992
- Testing for the equivalence of factor covariance and mean structures: The issue of partial measurement invariance.Psychological Bulletin, 1989
- Item bias and item response theoryInternational Journal of Educational Research, 1989
- Alternative approaches to factorial invariancePsychometrika, 1972