{"type":"script","doc_desc":{"producers":[{"name":"Reproducibility WBG","abbr":"DECDI","affiliation":"World Bank - Development Impact Department","role":"Verification and preparation of metadata"}],"prod_date":"2026-09-22","version":"1"},"project_desc":{"authoring_entity":[{"name":"Boshi Wang","affiliation":"Georgia State University","email":"bwang30@student.gsu.edu"},{"name":"Audrey J. Leroux","affiliation":"Georgia Institute of Technology","email":"aleroux@gatech.edu"},{"name":"Niyati Malhotra","affiliation":"World Bank","email":"nmalhotra4@worldbank.org"},{"name":"Tomas Koutecky","affiliation":"World Bank","email":"tkoutecky@worldbank.org"},{"name":"Victor Orozco","affiliation":"World Bank","email":"vorozco@worldbank.org"},{"name":"Stephanie Gottwald","affiliation":"Curious Learning","email":"sgottwald@curiouslearning.org"},{"name":"Tinsley Galyean","affiliation":"Curious Learning","email":"tgalyean@curiouslearning.org"}],"title_statement":{"title":"Reproducibility package for Validation Of A Cross-Linguistic Pictorial Socioeconomic Status Instrument For Illiterate And Diverse Global Populations In The Technological Age","idno":"RR_WLD_2026_736"},"data_statement":"Data is obtained through a custom data license that allows for redistribution and is included in the reproducibility package. For more details, refer to the README file.","software":[{"name":"R","version":"4.5.3"},{"name":"Mplus","version":"9.1.1 Demo"}],"scripts":[{"title":"Reproducibility package for Validation Of A Cross-Linguistic Pictorial Socioeconomic Status Instrument For Illiterate And Diverse Global Populations In The Technological Age","date":"2026-09","notes":"Computational reproducibility verified by Development Impact (DECDI) Analytics team, World Bank.","instructions":"See README in reproducibility package.","file_name":"RR_WLD_2026_736","zip_package":"RR_WLD_2026_736.zip","dependencies":"R dependencies are listed in the file renv.lock."}],"repository_uri":[{"name":"Reproducible Research Repository (World Bank)","uri":"https:\/\/reproducibility.worldbank.org"}],"production_date":"2026-09-22","abstract":"Measuring socioeconomic status (SES) remains a challenge in educational assessment, as text-based instruments often introduce construct-irrelevant variance among low-literacy populations. This study validates a novel pictorial SES instrument designed to mitigate these barriers. Data were collected via a digital app from 1,101 users across three linguistic groups: Bangla (n = 645), French (n = 280), and Zulu (n = 176). Methodologically, multiple nominal pictorial responses were collapsed into binary \u201cLow\u201d and \u201cHigh\u201d SES levels based on substantive economic meaning to address cross-cultural heterogeneity. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) using Weighted Least Squares Mean and Variance Adjusted estimation established a 6-item factor structure with good model fit (\u03c7^2 (9)=4.97,p=0.84, RMSEA = 0.00 [90% CI: 0.00, 0.02], CFI = 1.00, SRMR = 0.03). Mean inter-item tetrachoric correlation (.23) confirmed ideal internal consistency. Nomological validity was supported by a moderate correlation (r = .34) with early literacy skills, consistent with existing educational research. A multiple-group CFA established scalar measurement invariance across all three languages, confirming that the items function equivalently across diverse linguistic backgrounds. Substantively, the validated scale captures the transition to entry-level modernity, distinguishing between levels of poverty through infrastructural access rather than subjective social ranking. By removing the literacy-based barriers inherent in traditional surveys, this low-cost, digitally scalable tool offers a dignity-affirming and methodologically sound mechanism to help ensure accurate representation of economically disadvantaged populations in global educational research.","geographic_units":[{"name":"World","code":"WLD"}],"keywords":[{"name":"Socioeconomic Status (Ses)"},{"name":"Measurement Invariance"},{"name":"Pictorial Assessment"},{"name":"Confirmatory Factor Analysis"},{"name":"Measurement Equity"},{"name":"Cross-Linguistic Validation"}],"topics":[{"id":"I32","uri":"https:\/\/www.aeaweb.org\/econlit\/jelCodes.php?view=jel","vocabulary":"Journal of Economic Literature (JEL)","name":"Measurement and Analysis of Poverty","parent_id":"I3"},{"id":" I24","uri":"https:\/\/www.aeaweb.org\/econlit\/jelCodes.php?view=jel","vocabulary":"Journal of Economic Literature (JEL)","name":"Education and Inequality","parent_id":"I2"},{"id":" C38","uri":"https:\/\/www.aeaweb.org\/econlit\/jelCodes.php?view=jel","vocabulary":"Journal of Economic Literature (JEL)","name":"Classification Methods \u2022 Cluster Analysis \u2022 Principal Components \u2022 Factor Models","parent_id":"C3"},{"id":" C83","uri":"https:\/\/www.aeaweb.org\/econlit\/jelCodes.php?view=jel","vocabulary":"Journal of Economic Literature (JEL)","name":"Survey Methods \u2022 Sampling Methods","parent_id":"C8"},{"id":" I21","uri":"https:\/\/www.aeaweb.org\/econlit\/jelCodes.php?view=jel","vocabulary":"Journal of Economic Literature (JEL)","name":"Analysis of Education","parent_id":"I2"},{"id":" O15","uri":"https:\/\/www.aeaweb.org\/econlit\/jelCodes.php?view=jel","vocabulary":"Journal of Economic Literature (JEL)","name":"Human Resources \u2022 Human Development \u2022 Income Distribution \u2022 Migration","parent_id":"O1"}],"output":[{"type":"Working Paper","description":"Policy Research Working Paper (PRWP)","title":"Validation Of A Cross-Linguistic Pictorial Socioeconomic Status Instrument For Illiterate And Diverse Global Populations In The Technological Age","authors":"Boshi Wang, Audrey J. Leroux, Niyati Malhotra, Tomas Koutecky, Victor H. Orozco-Olvera, Stephanie Gottwald, Tinsley Galyean "}],"language":[{"name":"English","code":"EN"}],"technology_requirements":"Run time: ~15 minutes","disclaimer":"The materials in the reproducibility packages are distributed as they were prepared by the staff of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development\/The World Bank. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this event do not necessarily reflect the views of the World Bank, the Executive Directors of the World Bank, or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the materials included in the reproducibility package.","license":[{"name":"MIT License","uri":"https:\/\/opensource.org\/license\/mit"},{"name":"World Bank IGO Rider","uri":"https:\/\/github.com\/worldbank\/metadata-editor\/blob\/main\/WB-IGO-RIDER.md"}],"contacts":[{"name":"Tomas Koutecky","affiliation":"World Bank","email":"tkoutecky@worldbank.org"},{"name":"Reproducibility WBG","affiliation":"World Bank","email":"reproducibility@worldbank.org"}],"datasets":[{"access_type":"Data access was granted directly to the study authors by the data owners. It was obtained with a custom data license that allows for redistribution and is included in the reproducibility package.","license":"Custom license","name":"Pictorial Socioeconomic Status Surveys (2022-2024)","note":"The authors obtained the data used in this study through a data sharing agreement with Curious Learning. It is collected and owned by Curious Learning, with World Bank\u2019s DECDI team providing technical assistance on survey instrument design and analysis and the psychometrics analysis led by Georgia State University and Georgia Institute of Technology. For more information on the data, replicators can contact Tinsley Galyean (tgalyean@curiouslearning.org) or Stephanie Gottwald (sgottwald@curiouslearning.org).","citation":"Curious Learning. \"Pictorial Socioeconomic Status Surveys (2022-2024)\" [dataset]. Unpublished. Accessed 2024."}],"reproduction_instructions":"To reproduce the findings in this paper, a replicator must:\n1. **Run the Package:** \n-  R: Open the R project \"Replication.Rproj\" and restore the environment by running renv::restore(). Update the working directory in line 22 of the script `main.R`, and run it.\n2. Mplus: Open the standalone Mplus application and sequentially run the following files located in the \"02_Code\" folder: `04_01_CFA_6Items.inp`, `04_02_MI_Testing.inp`, `05_SEM Correlation.inp`.","technology_environment":"Paper exhibits were reproduced on a computer with the following specifications:\n\u2022 OS: Windows 11 Enterprise\n\u2022 Processor: Intel(R) Xeon(R) Gold 5218 CPU @ 2.30GHz (2.30 GHz) (2 processors)\n\u2022 Memory available: 16.0 GB\n\u2022 Software version: R 4.5.3, Mplus 9.1.1 Demo"},"datacite":{"creators":[{"givenName":"Boshi","familyName":"Wang","nameType":"Personal","affiliation":[{"name":"Georgia State University","affiliationIdentifier":"https:\/\/ror.org\/03qt6ba18","affiliationIdentifierScheme":"ROR","schemeUri":"https:\/\/ror.org"}]},{"givenName":"Audrey J.","familyName":"Leroux","nameType":"Personal","affiliation":[{"name":"Georgia Institute of Technology","affiliationIdentifier":"https:\/\/ror.org\/01zkghx44","affiliationIdentifierScheme":"ROR","schemeUri":"https:\/\/ror.org"}]},{"givenName":"Niyati","familyName":"Malhotra","nameType":"Personal","affiliation":[{"name":"World Bank","affiliationIdentifier":"https:\/\/ror.org\/00ae7jd04","affiliationIdentifierScheme":"ROR","schemeUri":"https:\/\/ror.org"}]},{"givenName":"Tomas","familyName":"Koutecky","nameType":"Personal","affiliation":[{"name":"World Bank","affiliationIdentifier":"https:\/\/ror.org\/00ae7jd04","affiliationIdentifierScheme":"ROR","schemeUri":"https:\/\/ror.org"}]},{"givenName":"Victor","familyName":"Orozco","nameType":"Personal","affiliation":[{"name":"World Bank","affiliationIdentifier":"https:\/\/ror.org\/00ae7jd04","affiliationIdentifierScheme":"ROR","schemeUri":"https:\/\/ror.org"}]},{"givenName":"Stephanie","familyName":"Gottwald","nameType":"Personal","affiliation":[{"name":"Curious Learning"}]},{"givenName":"Tinsley","familyName":"Galyean","nameType":"Personal","affiliation":[{"name":"Curious Learning"}]}],"titles":[{"lang":"en","title":"Reproducibility package for Validation Of A Cross-Linguistic Pictorial Socioeconomic Status Instrument For Illiterate And Diverse Global Populations In The Technological Age"},{"title":"RR_WLD_2026_736","titleType":"Other"}],"publisher":"World Bank","publicationYear":"2026","types":{"resourceType":"Reproducibility package","resourceTypeGeneral":"Other"},"url":"https:\/\/reproducibility.worldbank.org\/index.php\/catalog\/study\/RR_WLD_2026_736","language":"en"},"tags":[{"tag":"DOI"},{"tag":"Open Code"},{"tag":"Open Data"}],"schematype":"script"}