DISC Predictive Scales (DPS): Factor structure and uniform differential item functioning across gender and three...

The factor structure and potential uniform differential item functioning (DIF) among gender and three racial/ethnic groups of adolescents (African American, Latino, White) were evaluated for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), conduct disorder (CD), and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) symptom scores of the DISC Predictive Scales (DPS; Leung et al., 2005; Lucas et al., 2001). Primary caregivers reported on DSM-IV ADHD, CD, and ODD symptoms for a probability sample of 4,491 children from three geographical regions who took part in the Healthy Passages study (mean age = 12.60 years, SD = 0.66). Confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the expected 3-factor structure was tenable for the data. Multiple indicators multiple causes (MIMIC) modeling revealed uniform DIF for three ADHD and 9 ODD item scores, but not for any of the CD item scores. Uniform DIF was observed predominantly as a function of child race/ethnicity, but minimally as a function of child gender. On the positive side, uniform DIF had little impact on latent mean differences of ADHD, CD, and ODD symptomatology among gender and racial/ethnic groups. Implications of the findings for researchers and practitioners are discussed.