The (mis)measure of misbehavior: Cross-national invariance of the Youth Externalizing Problems Screener across 32 countries

Milica Lazić; Sabirah Adams; Rebeca Aritio-Solana; Christ Billy Aryanto; Andreja Avsec; Ali Bakhshi; Michael Bender; Sophie Berjot; Sonia Betancourth Zambrano; Andreja Brajša-Žganec; Yunier Broche-Pérez; Carmen Buzea; Rosario Cabello; Valentina Carreca; Rosalinda Cassibba; Judith Cavazos-Arroyo; Fatemeh Daemi; Diego D. Díaz-Guerra; Marija Džida; Mona Eidelsburger; Pablo Fernández-Berrocal; Evelyn Fernández-Castillo; Eduardo Fonseca-Pedrero; Tomasz Frackowiak; Teresa Freire; Vesna Gavrilov-Jerković; Biljana Gjoneska; Jesús Guerrero-Alcedo; Md Jamil Hossain; Jessie Hillekens; Stefan Höfer; Tareq Mahmud; Naved Iqbal; Szilvia Jámbori; Mohsen Joshanloo; Ljiljana Kaliterna Lipovčan; Tina Kavčič; Marta Kowal; Marija Krstevska Taseva; Kwok Kit Tong; Denisse Manrique-Millones; Michal Misiak; Pasquale Musso; Vojana Obradović; Javier Ortuño-Sierra; Ioana Orzea; Ahmet Özaslan; Joonha Park; Marija Pašić; Rasa Pilkauskaitė Valickienė; Rogelio Puente-Díaz; Lizbeth Puerta-Sierra; Gordana Ristevska Dimitrovska; S. Craig Roberts; Puji Tania Ronauli; Shazly Savahl; Danielius Serapinas; Sok Ian Kuan; Agnieszka Sorokowska; Piotr Sorokowski; Dijana Sulejmanović; Mst Sadia Sultana; Sze Man Yuen; Erzsébet Szél; Dušana Šakan; Henri Tilga; Aleksandar Tomašević; Wenceslao Unanue; Jesús Unanue; Marieke van Egmond; Murat Yıldırım; Gaja Zager Kocjan; Laura Zamarian; Marija Zotović-Kostić; Veljko Jovanović

doi:10.1017/S0954579425100473

The (mis)measure of misbehavior: Cross-national invariance of the Youth Externalizing Problems Screener across 32 countries

Milica Lazić
, Sabirah Adams
, Rebeca Aritio-Solana
, Christ Billy Aryanto
, Andreja Avsec
, Ali Bakhshi
, Michael Bender
, Sophie Berjot
, Sonia Betancourth Zambrano
, Andreja Brajša-Žganec
, Yunier Broche-Pérez
, Carmen Buzea
, Rosario Cabello
, Valentina Carreca
, Rosalinda Cassibba
, Judith Cavazos-Arroyo
, Fatemeh Daemi
, Diego D. Díaz-Guerra
, Marija Džida
, Mona Eidelsburger

Pablo Fernández-Berrocal, Evelyn Fernández-Castillo, Eduardo Fonseca-Pedrero, Tomasz Frackowiak, Teresa Freire, Vesna Gavrilov-Jerković, Biljana Gjoneska, Jesús Guerrero-Alcedo, Md Jamil Hossain, Jessie Hillekens, Stefan Höfer, Tareq Mahmud, Naved Iqbal, Szilvia Jámbori, Mohsen Joshanloo, Ljiljana Kaliterna Lipovčan, Tina Kavčič, Marta Kowal, Marija Krstevska Taseva, Kwok Kit Tong, Denisse Manrique-Millones, Michal Misiak, Pasquale Musso, Vojana Obradović, Javier Ortuño-Sierra, Ioana Orzea, Ahmet Özaslan, Joonha Park, Marija Pašić, Rasa Pilkauskaitė Valickienė, Rogelio Puente-Díaz, Lizbeth Puerta-Sierra, Gordana Ristevska Dimitrovska, S. Craig Roberts, Puji Tania Ronauli, Shazly Savahl, Danielius Serapinas, Sok Ian Kuan, Agnieszka Sorokowska, Piotr Sorokowski, Dijana Sulejmanović, Mst Sadia Sultana, Sze Man Yuen, Erzsébet Szél, Dušana Šakan, Henri Tilga, Aleksandar Tomašević, Wenceslao Unanue, Jesús Unanue, Marieke van Egmond, Murat Yıldırım, Gaja Zager Kocjan, Laura Zamarian, Marija Zotović-Kostić, Veljko Jovanović

Business School

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

The present study investigated the cross-national measurement invariance of a 10-item Youth Externalizing Problems Screener (YEPS) on a sample of 17,489 adolescents from 32 countries. The original one-factor and two-factor models of YEPS were found to provide a poor fit to the data in most countries. Following the removal of two semantically overlapping items and the inclusion of correlated error terms, adequate model fit was obtained in 31 of 32 countries. Measurement invariance testing of an abbreviated 8-item YEPS (YEPS-SF) supported configural invariance. Partial scalar invariance was achieved only after freely estimating numerous parameters. The alignment analysis revealed that 22% of parameters were non-invariant across countries. South Africa, Hungary, and India showed the largest number of non-invariant parameters, whereas the lowest number was detected in several European countries. These findings highlight the potential of the YEPS-SF for use within individual countries and the challenge of developing cross-culturally comparable measures, suggesting that cultural adaptations may be necessary.

Original language	English
Journal	Development and Psychopathology
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579425100473
State	Accepted/In press - 2025

Keywords

Adolescence
culture
externalizing problems
measurement invariance
youth externalizing problems screener

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1017/S0954579425100473

Cite this

Lazić, M., Adams, S., Aritio-Solana, R., Aryanto, C. B., Avsec, A., Bakhshi, A., Bender, M., Berjot, S., Zambrano, S. B., Brajša-Žganec, A., Broche-Pérez, Y., Buzea, C., Cabello, R., Carreca, V., Cassibba, R., Cavazos-Arroyo, J., Daemi, F., Díaz-Guerra, D. D., Džida, M., ... Jovanović, V. (Accepted/In press). The (mis)measure of misbehavior: Cross-national invariance of the Youth Externalizing Problems Screener across 32 countries. Development and Psychopathology. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579425100473

@article{0f81c0de7be9426b8be5eba6466847c1,

title = "The (mis)measure of misbehavior: Cross-national invariance of the Youth Externalizing Problems Screener across 32 countries",

abstract = "The present study investigated the cross-national measurement invariance of a 10-item Youth Externalizing Problems Screener (YEPS) on a sample of 17,489 adolescents from 32 countries. The original one-factor and two-factor models of YEPS were found to provide a poor fit to the data in most countries. Following the removal of two semantically overlapping items and the inclusion of correlated error terms, adequate model fit was obtained in 31 of 32 countries. Measurement invariance testing of an abbreviated 8-item YEPS (YEPS-SF) supported configural invariance. Partial scalar invariance was achieved only after freely estimating numerous parameters. The alignment analysis revealed that 22\% of parameters were non-invariant across countries. South Africa, Hungary, and India showed the largest number of non-invariant parameters, whereas the lowest number was detected in several European countries. These findings highlight the potential of the YEPS-SF for use within individual countries and the challenge of developing cross-culturally comparable measures, suggesting that cultural adaptations may be necessary.",

keywords = "Adolescence, culture, externalizing problems, measurement invariance, youth externalizing problems screener",

author = "Milica Lazi{\'c} and Sabirah Adams and Rebeca Aritio-Solana and Aryanto, \{Christ Billy\} and Andreja Avsec and Ali Bakhshi and Michael Bender and Sophie Berjot and Zambrano, \{Sonia Betancourth\} and Andreja Braj{\v s}a-{\v Z}ganec and Yunier Broche-P{\'e}rez and Carmen Buzea and Rosario Cabello and Valentina Carreca and Rosalinda Cassibba and Judith Cavazos-Arroyo and Fatemeh Daemi and D{\'i}az-Guerra, \{Diego D.\} and Marija D{\v z}ida and Mona Eidelsburger and Pablo Fern{\'a}ndez-Berrocal and Evelyn Fern{\'a}ndez-Castillo and Eduardo Fonseca-Pedrero and Tomasz Frackowiak and Teresa Freire and Vesna Gavrilov-Jerkovi{\'c} and Biljana Gjoneska and Jes{\'u}s Guerrero-Alcedo and Hossain, \{Md Jamil\} and Jessie Hillekens and Stefan H{\"o}fer and Tareq Mahmud and Naved Iqbal and Szilvia J{\'a}mbori and Mohsen Joshanloo and Lipov{\v c}an, \{Ljiljana Kaliterna\} and Tina Kav{\v c}i{\v c} and Marta Kowal and Taseva, \{Marija Krstevska\} and Tong, \{Kwok Kit\} and Denisse Manrique-Millones and Michal Misiak and Pasquale Musso and Vojana Obradovi{\'c} and Javier Ortu{\~n}o-Sierra and Ioana Orzea and Ahmet {\"O}zaslan and Joonha Park and Marija Pa{\v s}i{\'c} and Valickienė, \{Rasa Pilkauskaitė\} and Rogelio Puente-D{\'i}az and Lizbeth Puerta-Sierra and Dimitrovska, \{Gordana Ristevska\} and \{Craig Roberts\}, S. and Ronauli, \{Puji Tania\} and Shazly Savahl and Danielius Serapinas and Kuan, \{Sok Ian\} and Agnieszka Sorokowska and Piotr Sorokowski and Dijana Sulejmanovi{\'c} and Sultana, \{Mst Sadia\} and Yuen, \{Sze Man\} and Erzs{\'e}bet Sz{\'e}l and Du{\v s}ana {\v S}akan and Henri Tilga and Aleksandar Toma{\v s}evi{\'c} and Wenceslao Unanue and Jes{\'u}s Unanue and \{van Egmond\}, Marieke and Murat Yıldırım and Kocjan, \{Gaja Zager\} and Laura Zamarian and Marija Zotovi{\'c}-Kosti{\'c} and Veljko Jovanovi{\'c}",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press.",

year = "2025",

doi = "10.1017/S0954579425100473",

language = "English",

journal = "Development and Psychopathology",

issn = "0954-5794",

publisher = "Cambridge University Press",

}

Lazić, M, Adams, S, Aritio-Solana, R, Aryanto, CB, Avsec, A, Bakhshi, A, Bender, M, Berjot, S, Zambrano, SB, Brajša-Žganec, A, Broche-Pérez, Y, Buzea, C, Cabello, R, Carreca, V, Cassibba, R, Cavazos-Arroyo, J, Daemi, F, Díaz-Guerra, DD, Džida, M, Eidelsburger, M, Fernández-Berrocal, P, Fernández-Castillo, E, Fonseca-Pedrero, E, Frackowiak, T, Freire, T, Gavrilov-Jerković, V, Gjoneska, B, Guerrero-Alcedo, J, Hossain, MJ, Hillekens, J, Höfer, S, Mahmud, T, Iqbal, N, Jámbori, S, Joshanloo, M, Lipovčan, LK, Kavčič, T, Kowal, M, Taseva, MK, Tong, KK, Manrique-Millones, D, Misiak, M, Musso, P, Obradović, V, Ortuño-Sierra, J, Orzea, I, Özaslan, A, Park, J, Pašić, M, Valickienė, RP, Puente-Díaz, R, Puerta-Sierra, L, Dimitrovska, GR, Craig Roberts, S, Ronauli, PT, Savahl, S, Serapinas, D, Kuan, SI, Sorokowska, A, Sorokowski, P, Sulejmanović, D, Sultana, MS, Yuen, SM, Szél, E, Šakan, D, Tilga, H, Tomašević, A, Unanue, W, Unanue, J, van Egmond, M, Yıldırım, M, Kocjan, GZ, Zamarian, L, Zotović-Kostić, M & Jovanović, V 2025, 'The (mis)measure of misbehavior: Cross-national invariance of the Youth Externalizing Problems Screener across 32 countries', Development and Psychopathology. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579425100473

TY - JOUR

T1 - The (mis)measure of misbehavior

T2 - Cross-national invariance of the Youth Externalizing Problems Screener across 32 countries

AU - Lazić, Milica

AU - Adams, Sabirah

AU - Aritio-Solana, Rebeca

AU - Aryanto, Christ Billy

AU - Avsec, Andreja

AU - Bakhshi, Ali

AU - Bender, Michael

AU - Berjot, Sophie

AU - Zambrano, Sonia Betancourth

AU - Brajša-Žganec, Andreja

AU - Broche-Pérez, Yunier

AU - Buzea, Carmen

AU - Cabello, Rosario

AU - Carreca, Valentina

AU - Cassibba, Rosalinda

AU - Cavazos-Arroyo, Judith

AU - Daemi, Fatemeh

AU - Díaz-Guerra, Diego D.

AU - Džida, Marija

AU - Eidelsburger, Mona

AU - Fernández-Berrocal, Pablo

AU - Fernández-Castillo, Evelyn

AU - Fonseca-Pedrero, Eduardo

AU - Frackowiak, Tomasz

AU - Freire, Teresa

AU - Gavrilov-Jerković, Vesna

AU - Gjoneska, Biljana

AU - Guerrero-Alcedo, Jesús

AU - Hossain, Md Jamil

AU - Hillekens, Jessie

AU - Höfer, Stefan

AU - Mahmud, Tareq

AU - Iqbal, Naved

AU - Jámbori, Szilvia

AU - Joshanloo, Mohsen

AU - Lipovčan, Ljiljana Kaliterna

AU - Kavčič, Tina

AU - Kowal, Marta

AU - Taseva, Marija Krstevska

AU - Tong, Kwok Kit

AU - Manrique-Millones, Denisse

AU - Misiak, Michal

AU - Musso, Pasquale

AU - Obradović, Vojana

AU - Ortuño-Sierra, Javier

AU - Orzea, Ioana

AU - Özaslan, Ahmet

AU - Park, Joonha

AU - Pašić, Marija

AU - Valickienė, Rasa Pilkauskaitė

AU - Puente-Díaz, Rogelio

AU - Puerta-Sierra, Lizbeth

AU - Dimitrovska, Gordana Ristevska

AU - Craig Roberts, S.

AU - Ronauli, Puji Tania

AU - Savahl, Shazly

AU - Serapinas, Danielius

AU - Kuan, Sok Ian

AU - Sorokowska, Agnieszka

AU - Sorokowski, Piotr

AU - Sulejmanović, Dijana

AU - Sultana, Mst Sadia

AU - Yuen, Sze Man

AU - Szél, Erzsébet

AU - Šakan, Dušana

AU - Tilga, Henri

AU - Tomašević, Aleksandar

AU - Unanue, Wenceslao

AU - Unanue, Jesús

AU - van Egmond, Marieke

AU - Yıldırım, Murat

AU - Kocjan, Gaja Zager

AU - Zamarian, Laura

AU - Zotović-Kostić, Marija

AU - Jovanović, Veljko

PY - 2025

Y1 - 2025

N2 - The present study investigated the cross-national measurement invariance of a 10-item Youth Externalizing Problems Screener (YEPS) on a sample of 17,489 adolescents from 32 countries. The original one-factor and two-factor models of YEPS were found to provide a poor fit to the data in most countries. Following the removal of two semantically overlapping items and the inclusion of correlated error terms, adequate model fit was obtained in 31 of 32 countries. Measurement invariance testing of an abbreviated 8-item YEPS (YEPS-SF) supported configural invariance. Partial scalar invariance was achieved only after freely estimating numerous parameters. The alignment analysis revealed that 22% of parameters were non-invariant across countries. South Africa, Hungary, and India showed the largest number of non-invariant parameters, whereas the lowest number was detected in several European countries. These findings highlight the potential of the YEPS-SF for use within individual countries and the challenge of developing cross-culturally comparable measures, suggesting that cultural adaptations may be necessary.

AB - The present study investigated the cross-national measurement invariance of a 10-item Youth Externalizing Problems Screener (YEPS) on a sample of 17,489 adolescents from 32 countries. The original one-factor and two-factor models of YEPS were found to provide a poor fit to the data in most countries. Following the removal of two semantically overlapping items and the inclusion of correlated error terms, adequate model fit was obtained in 31 of 32 countries. Measurement invariance testing of an abbreviated 8-item YEPS (YEPS-SF) supported configural invariance. Partial scalar invariance was achieved only after freely estimating numerous parameters. The alignment analysis revealed that 22% of parameters were non-invariant across countries. South Africa, Hungary, and India showed the largest number of non-invariant parameters, whereas the lowest number was detected in several European countries. These findings highlight the potential of the YEPS-SF for use within individual countries and the challenge of developing cross-culturally comparable measures, suggesting that cultural adaptations may be necessary.

KW - Adolescence

KW - culture

KW - externalizing problems

KW - measurement invariance

KW - youth externalizing problems screener

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105019065978

U2 - 10.1017/S0954579425100473

DO - 10.1017/S0954579425100473

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:105019065978

SN - 0954-5794

JO - Development and Psychopathology

JF - Development and Psychopathology

ER -

The (mis)measure of misbehavior: Cross-national invariance of the Youth Externalizing Problems Screener across 32 countries

Abstract

Keywords

UN SDGs

Access to Document

Fingerprint

Cite this