Equivalence in research on positive development of minority children: Methodological approaches

Abstract

We describe methodological challenges in studies of positive development of minority youth. A framework is described that captures the main validity threats in this type of research. The framework involves different types of bias (referring to sources of systematic error in studies of minority youth). If there is bias in a study, the comparability of constructs or scores across minority groups can be challenged. Many procedures have been proposed in the literature to deal with such methodological problems, which affect either the design or the analysis of a study.We review such procedures and pay special attention to two topics that attract much attention in recent studies: response styles and mixed methods. It is concluded that sound methods can help to make study results more robust and replicable.