A Preliminary Validation of the Chinese Version of the Information Technology Identity Scale

Background: Information technology has become an irreplaceable part of people's lives, and the interaction between information technology and self-identity has produced a new type of information technology (IT) identity. However, there is no measurement tool for this concept in China. The main aim of the study was to revise Carter's IT Identity Scale in the context of Chinese cultural background and to determine whether the Chinese version is congruent with the English version.

Methods: In this study, we revised the scale on the basis of the information technology identity scale developed by Carter, translated the scale according to the Chinese cultural environment. Our sample size was 408, and all of them were junior middle school students. After testing this sample, we carried out item analysis, validity analysis, and reliability analysis.

Results: (1) The correlation coefficients between each item and the total score were significant (0.775-0.885). (2) The three-factor structure (relatedness, dependence, emotional energy) of the Chinese version of the IT identity scale was consistent with the original scale. The values of the factor loadings of each item in the three factors of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were all greater than 0.700, and the model fit indexes (CFI, NFI, NNFI, TLI and IFI) were all greater than 0.900, indicating a good model fit. (3) Average variance extraction (AVE), composite reliability (CR), Pearson correlation, and the square root of AVE indicated good convergence and discriminant validity. (4) The ɑ coefficients and CR of the three dimensions (ie, relatedness, dependence, emotional energy) were all greater than 0.800, and the split coefficients were all greater than 0.800, indicating high reliability.

Conclusion: The Chinese version of the information technology identity scale presented satisfactory psychometric properties and shared many similarities with the original version. Ultimately, we revised an information technology identity scale suitable for Chinese culture.