When considering the development of psychological screening instruments within a defined cultural group, one must also decide how far to go to develop local, culturally specific questionnaires [ 32, 33], which, whilst valid on a local scale, cannot be compared to external populations or to other well validated and widely used instruments.
Culture was defined as the cultural group with which the respondent most identified.
Not included were cultural groups defined by physical disabilities, sexual orientation, or other characteristics, as their particular concerns were not in the purview of this project.
Such problems appear to differ by topic area (i.e., for acculturation vs physical activity), but these differences do not appear to preclude the application of general survey question design rules to reduce error across different cultural groups defined by language use.
As a report commissioned by the Council of Europe noted: "After the war the different cultural groups, who define themselves as nations, have all wanted their own national cultural institutions with the Croats and Serbs asserting that the existing institutions, all of which are based in Sarajevo, increasingly represent Bosniaks".
Although most include youth of different ethnic and cultural groups, few attempt to define these constructs or to collect data that allow their characterization.
Acculturation, defined as a process that entails contact between two cultural groups, which results in numerous cultural changes in both parties [ 19], has been found to be an important predictor of health-risk among women generally [ 20].
Items exhibiting DIF may reflect key differences in how QoL is defined across ethnic groups, and important information can be obtained from these items for understanding cultural differences.
What cultural groups speak each language?
Self-employment patterns differ across cultural groups.
Cross-cultural constructs are assumed to have commonalities across cultural groups and settings.
