What influences the community well-being of Chinese living in metropolitan areas? A scale validation and invariance test across gender, age, and hukou.

Background: Rapid socioeconomic development has congregated urban dwellers in various communities, and it remains unclear whether raising income has brought greater happiness or well-being in China. The study aims to validate the Multi-dimensional Community Well-being Scale (MCWS) in the context of Chinese metropolitan areas.

Methods: Multistage stratified sampling from North, East, and West China yielded a total of 4786 community-dwelling adults (mean age = 54.66 years; 33.8% female). Exploratory factor analysis identified a four-factor pattern of habitability, accessibility, relation, and satisfaction. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) further verified the structure, and multigroup CFA tested the measurement invariance upon different genders, age groups, and hukou statuses.

Results: All the subscales and the total scale (α = 0.852) had satisfactory internal consistency. In addition, significant community well-being disparities exist between communities with and without elderly care and child care services. Also, the mean scores of accessibility, relation, and satisfaction grow steadily with age, except for habitability.

Conclusions: Overall, this study filled the research gap in China by presenting a reliable and valid instrument to measure community well-being, showing gender, age, and hukou-related characteristics in community well-being and enabling cross-cultural comparisons in urban studies.