ERIC Number: EJ1148863
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1938-2243
EISSN: N/A
Structural Analysis of Character Education: A Crosscultural Investigation
Sivo, Stephen; Karl, Shannon; Fox, Jesse; Taub, Gordon; Robinson, Edward
School Psychology Forum, v11 n2 p34-44 Sum 2017
The primary objective of this cross-cultural investigation is to compare patterns in student responses to an empirically scrutinized character education measure administered to students in four school districts in Florida with students in a school in Kenya. In this way, the generalizability of findings for scale scores could be compared across cultures. To this end, we conduct a mean structure analysis using structural equation modeling to observe whether multivariate mean differences exist among the factor structures underlying student responses. The results suggest that while students at a school in Kenya rated their school higher on the four scales, overall the latent scores for students within school districts in the United States appear higher. Thus, with respect to the underlying construct of character, this character education measure evidences some multicultural bias at the level of the latent scores. Based on these results, it is concluded that the character education measure does not completely yield generalizable results across cultures.
Descriptors: Cross Cultural Studies, Values Education, Foreign Countries, School Districts, Generalization, Structural Equation Models, Multivariate Analysis, Scores, Factor Structure, Comparative Analysis, Student Attitudes, Measures (Individuals), Cultural Differences, Educational Environment, Caring, Ethics, Student Responsibility, Statistical Analysis, Elementary Secondary Education, Factor Analysis
National Association of School Psychologists. 4340 East West Highway Suite 402, Bethesda, MD 20814. Tel: 301-657-0270; Fax: 301-657-0275; e-mail: publications@naspweb.org; Web site: http://naspjournals.org/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Kenya; Florida
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A