Description

The Hawaiian Cultural Identity Scale (HCIS) is a measure used to assess cultural orientation toward Hawaiian culture. Items ask about how knowledgeable participants are about Hawaiian culture, how involved they are in it, how they feel toward it, how often they associate with others from that culture, and, in some versions, how important the culture is to them. The scale captures multiple dimensions of cultural identity, including cognitive, behavioral, affective, and social components. A corresponding American Cultural Identity Scale (ACIS) has also been used in parallel to assess bicultural identification

AI/AN Communities where the measure has been used

Island of O‘ahu (3 homestead communities) and Hawai‘i Island (2 homestead communities); Native Hawaiian community (Kohala Health Research Project, 2008); Native Hawaiians recruited through civic and cultural organizations on O‘ahu (Kaholokula et al., 2010); Caregivers of Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, and Filipino infants living on O‘ahu (Kai et al., 2022)

Demographics of AI/AN participants where the scale has been used

Native Hawaiian adults

Notes on adaptations or modifications

  1. Kaholokula et al. (2008) and Ing et al. (2019) used a 4-item version of the scale (excluding the “importance” item). Kaholokula et al. (2010) used a 5-item version (including an “importance” item)
  2. Direction of total-score interpretation differs across papers.

Modality and administration

Self-report:

  • Kaholokula et al. (2008): Structured interview survey as part of the Kohala Health Research Project.
  • Kaholokula et al. (2010): Paper questionnaires self-administered at Native Hawaiian civic and cultural gatherings.
  • Ing et al. (2019): Mailed household survey packets as part of the Homestead Health Survey.
  • Antonio et al. (2016): Mailed paper survey

Scoring

  • Subscales scored 4–20; classification into integrated, traditional, assimilated, or marginalized categories based on cutoff ≥12 (Kaholokula et al., 2008)
  • Kaholokula et al. (2010): 5 items scored on a 1–5 Likert scale, reverse-coded so higher totals indicate stronger Hawaiian cultural identity. Total scores range 5–25.
  • Ing et al. (2019) and Antonio et al. (2016): 4 items scored on a 1–5 Likert scale, with totals ranging 4–20. Higher scores indicate stronger affiliation with Hawaiian culture.
  • Subscales scored 5–25; reverse scoring so lower values indicate stronger identity (Kai et al., 2022)

Psychometric evidence

  • Kaholokula et al. (2008): Cronbach’s α = .72 for both Hawaiian and Western U.S. cultural identity subscales.
  • Ing et al. (2019): Cronbach’s α = .97 for HCIS, .99 for ACIS.

Citation(s)

Original Citation:

  • Kaholokula J.K., Nacapoy A.H. ,Grandinetti A. et al. Association between acculturation modes and type 2 diabetes among Native Hawaiians. Diabetes Care. 2008,31(4):698-700.

Example Use Citation:

  • Kaholokula, J. K., Iwane, M. K., & Nacapoy, A. H. (2010). Effects of perceived racism and acculturation on hypertension in Native Hawaiians. Hawaii Medical Journal, 69, 11–15.
  • Ing, C. T., Antonio, M., Ahn, H. J., Cassel, K., Dillard, A., Kekauoha, B. P., & Kaholokula, J. K. (2019). An Examination of the Relationship between Discrimination, Depression, and Hypertension in Native Hawaiians. Asian American Journal of Psychology, 10(3), 249–257. https://doi.org/10.1037/aap0000151
  • Antonio, M. C., Ahn, H. J., Ing, C. T., Dillard, A., Cassel, K., Kekauoha, B. P., & Kaholokula, J. K. (2016). Self-Reported Experiences of Discrimination and Depression in Native Hawaiians. Hawai’i journal of medicine & public health : a journal of Asia Pacific Medicine & Public Health, 75(9), 266–272.
  • Antonio, M. C. K. (2017). An exploration of resilience among Native Hawaiians [Doctoral dissertation, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa]. University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa ScholarSpace. https://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/items/a0d8202e-75d4-42f4-844d-c2699b47cd9ahttps://doi.org/10.1037/aap0000151
  • Kai, J., Chen, J. J., Braun, K. L., Kaholokula, J. K., Novotny, R., Boushey, C. J., & Fialkowski, M. K. (2022). Associations between Cultural Identity, Household Membership and Diet Quality among Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, and Filipino Infants in Hawai’i. Children (Basel, Switzerland), 9(1), 48. https://doi.org/10.3390/children9010048

Disclaimer: The included citations are not exhaustive, but represent the examples we had access to. If you are an original author or have other work that could be included here, please contact us.