Measurement Invariance of the Short Inventory of Problems-Revised across African-American and Non-Latino White Substance Users

Abstract

This study investigated measurement invariance properties of the Short Inventory of Problems – Revised (SIP-R) across racial groups. The sample included 195 African American and 194 non-Latino White adult participants in a clinical trial investigating the effectiveness of motivational enhancement therapy in the National Institute on Drug Abuse Clinical Trials Network. The SIP-R demonstrated configural invariance and weak metric invariance, suggesting conceptualizations of adverse consequences of substance use are equivalent across racial groups. The SIP-R also indicated partial strong/scalar and strict metric invariance, suggesting a need for continued research of SIP-R items to ensure valid measurement and outcomes across racial groups.

A systematic scoping review of research on Black participants in the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network.

“…CTN studies have demonstrated that Black adults enter treatment (a) at an older age, (b) with higher levels of socioeconomic issues, and (c) with a range of self-reported primary drug use. In terms of studies reporting age (Brown et al, 2010; Dillon, Whiteman, & Duan, 2015; Montgomery & Carroll, 2017; Pagano et al, 2018; Peavy, Garrett, Doyle, & Donovan, 2017; Ruglass, Hien, Hu, & Campbell, 2014; Sanchez, Chartier, et al, 2015; Sanchez et al, 2017), the average age range for Black participants was between 37.9–44.9 years. One study, consisting of a sample of women with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and SUD, found Black women were older than their White counterparts (Ruglass et al, 2014).…”

“…Given that measurement equivalence is essential to good science, we applaud the CTN researchers who examined measurement equivalence across racial/ethnic groups for four measures used in the CTN. Although one CTN study found no racial/ethnic differences in total scores on the Short Inventory of Problems-Revised (SIP-R), a measure of the negative consequences from substance use (Kiluk, Dreifuss, Weiss, Morgenstern, & Carroll, 2013), another study directly assessed measurement equivalence of the measure (Dillon et al, 2015). The authors found partial/strong scalar invariance and partial strict metric invariance on the SIP-R between Black and White adults.…”

Measurement invariance and other psychometric properties of the Short Inventory of Problems (SIP-2R) across racial groups in adults experiencing homelessness and alcohol use disorder.

“…Although a prior study tested metric invariance of the SIP-AD across racial groups (Dillon et al, 2015), no study to date has assessed the measurement invariance of the SIP-2R across racial groups or among adults experiencing homelessness with AUD. Given the stark alcohol-related, racial health inequities that disproportionately impact people experiencing homelessness, it is important to expand this work further and test the reliability, validity, and measurement invariance of the SIP-2R in Black, NAI, and White people experiencing homelessness and AUD.…”

“…Although a prior study tested metric invariance of the SIP-AD across racial groups (Dillon et al, 2015), no study to date has assessed the measurement invariance of the SIP-2R across racial groups or among adults experiencing homelessness with AUD. Given the stark alcohol-related, racial health inequities that This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.…”

“…Given the stark alcohol-related health and social inequities that exist across racial groups experiencing homelessness, it is of vital importance to ensure our measurement tools are reliable and valid and that they measure the same constructs across different population subgroups. Although some commonly utilized alcohol measures have been validated for use in marginalized populations (Dillon et al, 2015; Goldstein et al, in press; Hirchak et al, 2021; Marra et al, 2014; Noel et al, 2010), many frequently used measurement tools have not been created nor psychometrically validated for use with individuals from racially diverse backgrounds. Importantly, measurement tools that are utilized to establish health inequities need to be empirically reliable, valid, and equivalent across diverse groups (Walls et al, 2019).…”