Does the Brazilian Household Food Insecurity Measurement Scale Allow for Valid Comparisons Across Sex, Race, and Education? A Measurement Invariance Analysis Using the National Household Sample Survey

BackgroundThe Brazilian Household Food Insecurity Measurement Scale (Escala Brasileira de Insegurança Alimentar, EBIA) is widely used to assess food insecurity (FI) in Brazil and has demonstrated strong internal and external validity. However, evidence regarding its measurement invariance across different population groups remains limited.ObjectiveThis study aimed to evaluate the invariance of the 8-item EBIA by sex, race, and education of household members, using data from the 2013 Brazilian National Household Sample Survey (n = 116 543).MethodsThe sample was split into three independent subsamples, and multigroup confirmatory factor analysis and the alignment method were employed to test for measurement invariance across groups. Households were classified according to the composition of residents based on each variable.ResultsFindings indicated that the EBIA exhibits configural and scalar invariance across all three groupings. Although the alignment method identified a few localized violations, over 80% of parameters were invariant, suggesting approximate invariance.ConclusionsWe conclude that EBIA demonstrates broad measurement invariance across sex, race, and education, supporting valid comparisons of FI scores among these subpopulations. These findings reinforce the psychometric robustness of EBIA as a tool for monitoring FI in diverse sociodemographic contexts.