Cultural adaptation and validation of the digital maturity inventory for chinese adolescents: A multidimensional psychometric evaluation

Background Digital maturity is a critical construct for adolescent development in the digital age, yet its primary assessment tool, the Digital Maturity Inventory (DIMI), was developed and validated exclusively in Western cultural contexts. This study aimed to translate, culturally adapt, and conduct a comprehensive psychometric validation of the DIMI among Chinese adolescents. Method A two-phase study was conducted with a total sample of 4,193 Chinese students from grades 4 to 9. The DIMI was rigorously translated and culturally adapted following established guidelines. The psychometric evaluation involved item analysis, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) on a randomly selected subsample ( n = 1,638), and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) on a separate subsample ( n = 1,643). Reliability, construct validity, criterion-related validity, and measurement invariance across gender, grade, and ethnicity were systematically assessed. Results Factor analyses supported a modified 29-item, nine-factor Digital Maturity Inventory of Chinese version (DIMI-C), after deleting the original “Autonomous Choice to Use Mobile Devices” dimension due to cultural inapplicability. The DIMI-C demonstrated strong internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.929), good construct validity, and moderate test-retest reliability over a six-month interval (r = 0.515). Critically, and in stark contrast to Western findings, digital maturity was positively correlated with greater mobile device use ( r = 0.232) and problematic device use ( r = 0.133). The scale achieved scalar invariance across gender and grade, but only borderline scalar invariance across ethnic groups (ΔCFI = 0.010 at the exact threshold), warranting caution in cross-ethnic mean comparisons. Conclusion Our work showed that the DIMI-C is a reliable and valid measure for assessing adolescents' digital maturity in Chinese culture, highlighting the necessity of cultural adaptation when applying such psychological tools in non-Western societies.