Entitlement in Higher Education: Evaluating the Measurement Invariance Properties of the Academic Entitlement Questionnaire

Self-report instruments are commonly used in the educational and behavioral sciences. The purpose of this study was to investigate the measurement invariance properties of the Academic Entitlement Questionnaire (AEQ) developed by Kopp, Zinn, Finney, and Jurich, across gender and college rank (i.e., lower classmen, upper classmen, and graduate students). Partial metric and scalar invariance was established for the AEQ across gender. In relation to college rank, partial metric invariance was met, but scalar invariance did not hold. The results of the study may benefit educational researchers who are interested in using the AEQ or examining attributes that may be associated with academic entitlement.