Functional equivalence

In international marketing research, it is critical to establish equivalence of scales used to obtain data from different countries. In this regard functional equivalence examines whether a given concept or behaviour serves the same role or function in different countries. For example, in many developing countries, bicycles (even in China) are predominantly a means of transportation rather than recreation and this is exactly opposite in many developed countries. Researching motives for purchase or use of bicycles in different countries this factor should be kept in mind.