Studies establishing the validity of a test used with persons from different ethnic groups are necessary for understanding the extent to which the test adequately and consistently reflects the qualities it is designed to measure. The present study examined the construct and content validity of the Student Styles Questionnaire (SSQ) for three racial-ethnic groups (i.e., African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Anglo Americans). The SSQ is a temperament measure for students aged 8 through 17. Comparative construct validity results indicate that a high degree of factor similarity exists across racial-ethnic groups; factor similarity is less strong when Hispanic Americans living in New York and Texas are compared. Differential item functioning studies reveal similar response patterns for Hispanic Americans when compared to both African Americans and Anglo Americans; however, differences occur on 25% of items when African and Anglo Americans are compared.
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