Measurement Invariance of Cognitive Abilities Across Ethnicity, Gender, and Time Among Older Americans.

OBJECTIVES The aim of this research was to test the invariance of the cognitive variables in the Health and Retirement Study/Asset Health Dynamics Among the Oldest Old studies (HRS/AHEAD) across ethnicity, gender, and time. METHOD Analyses were conducted using a selected subsample of the HRS/AHEAD data set. The cognitive performance tests measuring episodic memory and mental status were used, and invariance of a two-factor structure was tested using confirmatory factor analyses and multilevel modeling for longitudinal data. RESULTS Results provided some support for "strict" factorial invariance of the episodic memory and mental status measures across ethnicity and gender. Further support of weak ("metric") measurement invariance was found across time. DISCUSSION Results of the research further our understanding of invariance of the HRS/AHEAD cognitive ability measures. Further implications are discussed.