Cross-national invariance of the brief measure of psychological well-being in six Latin American countries

Caycho-Rodríguez T.; Sánchez-Villena A.; Torales J.; Hualparuca-Olivera L.; Carbajal-León C.; Ferrufino-Borja D.; Puerta-Cortés D.X.; Lobos-Rivera M.E.; Sotomayor Soloaga P.A.; Moreta-Herrera R.; Muñoz-Del-Carpio-Toia A.; Baños-Chaparro J.; Reyes-Bossio M.; Gamarra-Moncayo J.; Ventriglio A.; Samaniego-Pinho A.; García-Cadena C. · Counselling Psychology Quarterly (2026) · DOI: 10.1080/09515070.2025.2556697

Resumen

The Psychological Well-Being Scale (EBP-CG) is a brief instrument developed in Mexico and applied in various Latin American countries. Despite its growing use in cross-national research, its measurement invariance has not yet been formally assessed. This study aimed to evaluate the measurement invariance of the EBP-CG in samples from six Latin American countries: El Salvador, Paraguay, Chile, Colombia, Bolivia, and Peru. A total of 2,513 participants (63.99% women; M age = 31.80, SD = 11.50) completed the EBP-CG. Two complementary techniques were used to assess invariance: multigroup confirmatory factor analysis (MGCFA) and the alignment method. Results from both methods supported configural and metric invariance across countries, while scalar invariance was not established. However, the alignment method indicated approximate measurement invariance, allowing for meaningful comparisons of latent means. No significant cross-national differences were observed in psychological well-being, although Chile exhibited the highest mean score. These findings advance the cross-cultural validation of the EBP-CG and provide methodological guidance for researchers conducting psychological assessments across diverse Latin American populations.

Instituciones: Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas; Universidad Científica del Sur; Universidad de San Martín de Porres; Universidad Tecnológica del Perú; Universidad Continental; Universidad Católica de Santa María; Universidad Privada Norbert Wiener; Universidad Católica Santo Toribio de Mogrovejo