The number of immigrants worldwide is growing and migration might be a risk factor for the mental health of children. A reliable instrument is needed to measure immigrants' childrens mental health. The aim of the study was to test the measurement invariance of the parent version of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) between German native, Turkish origin and Russian origin immigrant parents in Germany. The SDQ is one of the most frequently used screening instruments for mental health disorders in children. Differential Item Functioning (DIF) was tested in samples matched by socio-economic status, age and gender of the child. A logistic regression/item response theory hybrid method and a multiple indicators- multiple causes model (MIMIC) was used to test for DIF. Multi Group Confirmatory Factor analysis (MGCFA) was used to test for configural invariance. Parent reports of 10610 German native, 534 Russian origin and 668 Turkish origin parents of children aged 3–17 years were analysed. DIF items were found in both groups and with both methods. We did not find an adequate fit of the original five factor model of the SDQ for the Turkish origin group, but for the Russian origin group. An analysis of functional equivalence indicated that the SDQ is equally useful for the screening of mental health disorders in all three groups. Using the SDQ in order to compare the parent reports of native and immigrant parents should be done cautiously. Thus, the use of the SDQ in epidemiological studies and for prevention planning is questionable. However, the SDQ turns out to be a valid instrument for screening purposes in parents of native and immigrant children.

中文翻译：

---

衡量孩子的情绪和行为问题：来自本地和移民父母的 SDQ 父母报告是否具有可比性？

全世界的移民数量正在增长，移民可能是儿童心理健康的一个风险因素。需要一种可靠的工具来衡量移民儿童的心理健康。该研究的目的是测试德国本土、土耳其裔和俄罗斯裔移民父母在德国的优势和困难问卷 (SDQ) 的父母版本的测量不变性。SDQ 是儿童心理健康障碍最常用的筛查工具之一。在与儿童的社会经济地位、年龄和性别相匹配的样本中测试了差异项目功能 (DIF)。使用逻辑回归/项目响应理论混合方法和多指标-多原因模型 (MIMIC) 来测试 DIF。多组验证性因素分析（MGCFA）用于测试配置不变性。对 3-17 岁儿童的 10610 名德国人、534 名俄罗斯人和 668 名土耳其人父母的父母报告进行了分析。在两组和两种方法中都发现了 DIF 项目。我们没有找到适合土耳其血统组的 SDQ 的原始五因素模型，而是俄罗斯血统组。对功能等效性的分析表明，SDQ 对于筛查所有三组的精神健康障碍同样有用。使用 SDQ 比较本地和移民父母的父母报告应谨慎进行。因此，在流行病学研究和预防计划中使用 SDQ 是有问题的。然而，