Differential item functioning in the Unified Dyskinesia Rating Scale (UDysRS)

Test if differential item functioning due to gender, age, race/ethnicity, or education impacts Unified Dyskinesia Rating Scale scores.

Testing rating scales for differential item functioning is a core validation step. If differential item functioning exists, interpretation of item scores must consider secondary influences on dyskinesia ratings.

Using Unified Dyskinesia Rating Scale translation databases (N = 3,132), we tested uniform and nonuniform differential item functioning. We required confirmation by two independent methods and considered differential item functioning pertinent if McFadden pseudo R² magnitude statistics exceeded negligible ratings.

No age, race/ethnicity, or education nonuniform differential item functioning was identified. Gender nonuniform differential item functioning occurred for 2 items, both with negligible magnitude. Gender, race, and education uniform differential item functioning was observed for multiple items, all with negligible magnitude.

The Unified Dyskinesia Rating Scale items effectively capture dyskinesia severity without pertinent gender, age, race/ ethnicity, or education influence. © 2017 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.