Cross-cultural measurement invariance of the pandemic fatigue scale (PFS) in five South American countries

This study evaluated the cross-cultural measurement invariance of the Pandemic Fatigue Scale (PFS) in five South American countries, Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay. A total of 1448 people selected through convenience sampling (295 Argentines, 294 Bolivians, 279 Uruguayans, 277 Peruvians, and 303 Paraguayans) participated. The two-dimensional structure of the PFS fitted well with the data from each country. Invariance analysis showed that PFS was completely invariant across countries, thus providing a solid basis for comparisons between groups. Adequate discrimination and difficulty were reported for all items. Adequate discrimination parameters would indicate that the PFS items would allow people to differentiate the choice of response alternatives based on the presence of PF. In addition, the difficulty parameters indicate that people require a greater presence of the latent trait to respond to the higher response alternatives of PFS. It was also observed that the boredom and neglect dimensions have a significant and negative impact on protective behaviors, providing evidence of validity based on their relationship with other constructs. In conclusion, the PFS presents evidence of validity and MI for the measurement of PF in the five South American countries included in this study. Thus, PFS can contribute to future empirical research that compares FP in different South American populations and cultures.