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. 2017 Dec 1;6(4):620-629.
doi: 10.1556/2006.6.2017.071. Epub 2017 Nov 13.

Psychometric validation of the Persian Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale using classic test theory and Rasch models

Chung-Ying Lin  1 , Anders Broström  2 , Per Nilsen  3 , Mark D Griffiths  4 , Amir H Pakpour  2   5
Affiliations

Psychometric validation of the Persian Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale using classic test theory and Rasch models

Chung-Ying Lin et al. J Behav Addict. .

Abstract

Background and aims The Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS), a six-item self-report scale that is a brief and effective psychometric instrument for assessing at-risk social media addiction on the Internet. However, its psychometric properties in Persian have never been examined and no studies have applied Rasch analysis for the psychometric testing. This study aimed to verify the construct validity of the Persian BSMAS using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and Rasch models among 2,676 Iranian adolescents. Methods In addition to construct validity, measurement invariance in CFA and differential item functioning (DIF) in Rasch analysis across gender were tested for in the Persian BSMAS. Results Both CFA [comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.993; Tucker-Lewis index (TLI) = 0.989; root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.057; standardized root mean square residual (SRMR) = 0.039] and Rasch (infit MnSq = 0.88-1.28; outfit MnSq = 0.86-1.22) confirmed the unidimensionality of the BSMAS. Moreover, measurement invariance was supported in multigroup CFA including metric invariance (ΔCFI = -0.001; ΔSRMR = 0.003; ΔRMSEA = -0.005) and scalar invariance (ΔCFI = -0.002; ΔSRMR = 0.005; ΔRMSEA = 0.001) across gender. No item displayed DIF (DIF contrast = -0.48 to 0.24) in Rasch across gender. Conclusions Given the Persian BSMAS was unidimensional, it is concluded that the instrument can be used to assess how an adolescent is addicted to social media on the Internet. Moreover, users of the instrument may comfortably compare the sum scores of the BSMAS across gender.

Keywords: Rasch analysis; adolescence; confirmatory factor analysis; differential item functioning; measurement invariance; social media addiction.

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Figures

<i>Figure 1</i>.
Figure 1.
Ordered categorical functioning in the response scale of Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS)
<i>Figure 2</i>.
Figure 2.
The relationship between Rasch score and the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS) score
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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