bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Investigating the relationship between variations in students' perceptions of their academic environment and variations in study behaviour in distance education
Authors: Richardson John T. E.
Published: September 2006

Background. Recent research on student learning in higher education has identified clear associations between variations in students' perceptions of their academic environment and variations in their study behaviour.

Aims. This research investigated a general theoretical model linking students' demographic characteristics, perceptions and study behaviour with measures of outcome and in particular compared four accounts of the casual relationship between perceptions and study behaviour.

Samples. Study 1 employed data from 1,123 students taking six courses by distance learning; Study 2 employed data from 2,049 students taking seven courses by distance learning.

Methods. Path analysis was used to assess the causal relationships among the students' age, gender and prior qualifications, their scores on the Course Experience Questionnaire, their scores on a short version of the Approaches to Studying Inventory or the Revised Approaches to Studying Inventory, their overall marks and their ratings of general satisfaction.

Results. Both studies yielded evidence for the causal efficacy of all the paths identified in the general theoretical model.

Conclusions. There exists a bi‐directional causal relationship between variations in students' perceptions of their academic environment and variations in their study behaviour.
Academic self‐handicapping: The role of self‐concept clarity and students' learning strategies
Authors: Thomas Cathy R. , Gadbois Shannon A.
Published: September 2006

Background. Self‐handicapping is linked to students' personal motivations, classroom goal structure, academic outcomes, global self‐esteem and certainty of self‐esteem. Academic self‐handicapping has yet to be studied with respect to students' consistency in self‐description and their description of themselves as learners.

Aims. This study examined students' self‐esteem and self‐concept clarity as well as their tendencies to employ deep‐ or surface‐learning approaches and self‐regulate while learning in relation to their self‐handicapping tendencies and exam performance.

Sample. Participants were 161 male and female Canadian, first‐year university students.

Method. Participants completed a series of questionnaires that measured their self‐esteem, self‐concept clarity, approaches to learning, self‐regulation and reflections on performance prior to and following their exam.

Results. Self‐handicapping was negatively correlated with self‐concept clarity, deep learning, self‐regulated learning and exam grades, and positively correlated with surface learning and test anxiety. Regression analyses showed that self‐concept clarity, self‐regulation, surface‐learning and test anxiety scores predicted self‐handicapping scores. Self‐concept clarity, test anxiety scores, academic self‐efficacy and self‐regulation were predictors of mid‐term exam grades.

Conclusions. This study showed that students' self‐concept clarity and learning strategies are related to their tendencies to self‐handicap and their exam performance. The role of students' ways of learning and their self‐concept clarity in self‐handicapping and academic performance was explored.
Job stressors, personality and burnout in primary school teachers
Authors: Kokkinos Constantinos M.
Published: September 2006

Background. Teaching is considered a highly stressful occupation. Burnout is a negative affective response occurring as a result of chronic work stress. While the early theories of burnout focused exclusively on work‐related stressors, recent research adopts a more integrative approach where both environmental and individual factors are studied. Nevertheless, such studies are scarce with teacher samples.

Aims. The present cross‐sectional study sought to investigate the association between burnout, personality characteristics and job stressors in primary school teachers from Cyprus. The study also investigates the relative contribution of these variables on the three facets of burnout – emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and reduced personal accomplishment.

Sample. A representative sample of 447 primary school teachers participated in the study.

Method. Teachers completed measures of burnout, personality and job stressors along with demographic and professional data. Surveys were delivered by courier to schools, and were distributed at faculty meetings.

Results. Results showed that both personality and work‐related stressors were associated with burnout dimensions. Neuroticism was a common predictor of all dimensions of burnout although in personal accomplishment had a different direction. Managing student misbehaviour and time constraints were found to systematically predict dimensions of burnout.

Conclusions. Teachers' individual characteristics as well as job related stressors should be taken into consideration when studying the burnout phenomenon. The fact that each dimension of the syndrome is predicted by different variables should not remain unnoticed especially when designing and implementing intervention programmes to reduce burnout in teachers.
Classroom interactions: Exploring the practices of high‐ and low‐expectation teachers
Authors: Rubie‐Davies Christine M.
Published: September 2006

Background. Early research exploring teacher expectations concentrated on the dyadic classroom interactions of teachers with individual students. More recent studies have shown whole class factors to have more significance in portraying teachers' expectations. Recently teachers having high or low expectations for all their students have been identified.

Aims. The aim of the current investigation was to explore whether the classroom exchanges of high‐ and low‐expectation teachers differed substantially and might be considered a mechanism for teachers' expectations.

Sample. The participants were 12 primary school teachers from eight schools who had been identified as having expectations for their students' learning that were either significantly above or below the children's achievement level. The teachers formed three groups called high‐expectation, low‐expectation and average‐progress teachers.

Method. The participants were observed twice in the academic year during half‐hour reading lessons. Two people observed each lesson, one completing a structured observation protocol and the other a running record and audiotape.

Results. In contrast to the average progress and low expectation teachers, the high‐expectation teachers spent more time providing a framework for students' learning, provided their students with more feedback, questioned their students using more higher‐order questions, and managed their students' behaviour more positively.

Conclusions. There appear to be important differences in the classroom environments for the students of high‐expectation, average‐progress and low‐expectation teachers. The differences apply to both the instructional and socioemotional environments of the classroom. Such disparities may act as mechanisms for teacher expectation effects.
‘Ain't nothin' like the real thing’. Motivation and study processes on a work‐based project course in information systems design
Authors: Helle Laura , Tynjälä Päivi , Olkinuora Erkki , Lonka Kirsti
Published: September 2006

Background. Advocates of the project method claim that project‐based learning inspires student learning. However, it has been claimed that project‐based learning environments demand quite a bit of self‐regulation on the part of the learner.

Aims. Consequently, it was tested whether students scoring low in self‐regulation of learning experienced ‘friction’, an incompatibility between student self‐regulation and the demands posed by the learning environment. This would be manifest in cognitive processing and motivation.

Samples. The target group consisted of 58 mainly third‐year Finnish university students taking a mandatory project course in information systems design. During the project course, student teams completed a commissioned assignment. The study also included a matched nonequivalent comparison group composed of computer science students attending study programmes without a project‐based component.

Methods. Data were gathered by means of a questionnaire administered at the beginning and end of the project course and it was analysed by between‐groups repeated measures ANOVA. In addition, the students on the course were interviewed.

Results. Results suggest that the work‐based project model in question may indeed have a substantial motivational impact, interestingly benefitting especially those students who scored low in self‐regulation.

Conclusions. It is argued that we tend to view learning environments too simplistically. In particular, a basic distinction should be made between individual and collaborative learning contexts, since peer scaffolding, group grading and choice of group roles may explain why students scoring low in self‐regulation of learning did not encounter friction as expected.
Examining the validity of self‐reports on scales measuring students' strategic processing
Authors: Samuelstuen Marit S. , Bråten Ivar
Published: September 2006

Background. Self‐report inventories trying to measure strategic processing at a global level have been much used in both basic and applied research. However, the validity of global strategy scores is open to question because such inventories assess strategy perceptions outside the context of specific task performance.

Aims. The primary aim was to examine the criterion‐related and construct validity of the global strategy data obtained with the Cross‐Curricular Competencies (CCC) scale. Additionally, we wanted to compare the validity of these data with the validity of data obtained with a task‐specific self‐report inventory focusing on the same types of strategies.

Sample. The sample included 269 10th‐grade students from 12 different junior high schools.

Methods. Global strategy use as assessed with the CCC was compared with task‐specific strategy use reported in three different reading situations. Moreover, relationships between scores on the CCC and scores on measures of text comprehension were examined and compared with relationships between scores on the task‐specific strategy measure and the same comprehension measures.

Results. The comparison between the CCC strategy scores and the task‐specific strategy scores suggested only modest criterion‐related validity for the data obtained with the global strategy inventory. The CCC strategy scores were also not related to the text comprehension measures, indicating poor construct validity. In contrast, the task‐specific strategy scores were positively related to the comprehension measures, indicating good construct validity.

Conclusion. Attempts to measure strategic processing at a global level seem to have limited validity and utility.
Mental models of learning in distance education
Authors: Richardson John T. E.
Published: September 2006

Background. Interview‐based research has shown that students in higher education hold a number of different conceptions of learning and of themselves as learners. There is debate about whether these conceptions constitute a developmental hierarchy.

Aims. This study evaluated the Mental Models section of Vermunt and van Rijswijk's (1988) Inventory of Learning Styles (ILS) as a measure of students' conceptions of learning and sought to identify conceptions of learning as qualitatively different patterns of scores.

Sample. A random sample of 1,000 students who were taking courses by distance learning with the Open University in the UK.

Method. A translated and adapted version of the Mental Models section of the ILS was administered in a postal survey. Complete data were obtained from 441 students and were subjected to principal component analysis, cluster analysis and discriminant analysis.

Results. The five scales in the Mental Models section of the ILS were homogeneous and achieved a satisfactory level of internal consistency, but two of the five scales could not be differentiated from each other in the students' responses. A cluster analysis identified four subgroups of students who had different patterns of scores on two discriminant functions.

Conclusion. The four mental models identified in this study were broadly similar to those identified by Vermunt (1996) in an interview‐based study. However, these do not seem to constitute a developmental hierarchy, and, following Vermunt, it is suggested that they are better interpreted as aspects of four over‐arching ‘learning styles’ or ‘learning patterns’.
School violence and teacher professional disengagement
Authors: Galand Benoît , Lecocq Catherine , Philippot Pierre
Published: September 2006

Background. Most studies of school violence have focused on students. Consequently, precursors and consequences of violence experienced by teachers are less well documented. Previous research indicates that (a) verbal victimization, student misbehaviour and perceived violence at school impair teacher emotional well‐being, (b) support from principal and colleagues reduces these difficulties and fosters well‐being, (c) well‐being impacts on professional involvement. However, it is still not clear how those variables relate to each other.

Aims. To test and compare – through structural equation modelling – two models of the relationships between perceived school support, exposure to school violence, subjective well‐being and professional disengagement. To test – through multigroup analysis – the buffering effect of school support between school violence and well‐being.

Sample. Participants in this study were 487 French‐speaking teachers (57% female) randomly selected from 24 secondary schools in Belgium.

Method. Participants completed a questionnaire on school leadership, relationships with colleagues, verbal victimization, students' misbehaviour, perceived violence, depression, somatization, anxiety and professional disengagement.

Results. The results support a model in which perceived school support has a direct effect on exposure to school violence, subjective well‐being and professional disengagement, while the effect of school violence on disengagement is totally mediated by well‐being. No evidence of a moderating effect of school support was found.

Conclusions. The results of this study suggest that the negative emotional impact of some forms of school violence could be an important factor in a teacher's intention to leave, and that school support could be even more important for both teacher emotional well‐being and professional disengagement.
Pupils' over‐reliance on linearity: A scholastic effect?
Authors: Van Dooren Wim , De Bock Dirk , Janssens Dirk , Verschaffel Lieven
Published: September 2006

Background. From upper elementary education on, children develop a tendency to over‐use linearity. Particularly, it is found that many pupils assume that if a figure enlarges k times, the area enlarges k times too. However, most research was conducted with traditional, school‐like word problems.

Aims. This study examines whether pupils also over‐use linearity if non‐linear problems are embedded in meaningful, authentic performance tasks instead of traditional, school‐like word problems, and whether this experience influences later behaviour.

Sample. Ninety‐three sixth graders from two primary schools in Flanders, Belgium.

Method. Pupils received a pre‐test with traditional word problems. Those who made a linear error on the non‐linear area problem were subjected to individual interviews. They received one new non‐linear problem, in the S‐condition (again a traditional, scholastic word problem), D‐condition (the same word problem with a drawing) or P‐condition (a meaningful performance‐based task). Shortly afterwards, pupils received a post‐test, containing again a non‐linear word problem.

Results. Most pupils from the S‐condition displayed linear reasoning during the interview. Offering drawings (D‐condition) had a positive effect, but presenting the problem as a performance task (P‐condition) was more beneficial. Linear reasoning was nearly absent in the P‐condition. Remarkably, at the post‐test, most pupils from all three groups again applied linear strategies.

Conclusions. Pupils' over‐reliance on linearity seems partly elicited by the school‐like word problem format of test items. Pupils perform much better if non‐linear problems are offered as performance tasks. However, a single experience does not change performances on a comparable word problem test afterwards.
A comparison of keyboarded and handwritten compositions and the relationship with transcription speed
Authors: Connelly Vincent , Gee Deborah , Walsh Elinor
Published: September 2006

Background. It is well established that handwriting fluency constrains writing quality by limiting resources for higher order processes such as planning and reviewing. According to the ‘simple view of writing’ then slow keyboarding speed should hinder the quality of keyboarded essay compositions in the same way that slow handwriting hinders handwritten essay compositions. Given a lack of touch‐typing instruction in UK schools it was hypothesized that children's written compositions produced via the keyboard would be worse than produced by hand.

Aims. To extend the work of Christensen (2004) and Rogers and Case‐Smith (2002) by examining the relationship between handwriting fluency and keyboarding fluency throughout the primary school and studying the link between word‐processed compositional quality and keyboarding fluency.

Samples and methods. The handwriting fluency and keyboarding fluency of 300 children in primary school were measured. Year 5 and year 6 children completed a measure of compositional quality by hand and by keyboard.

Results and comment. There was a high correlation between handwriting and keyboarding speed and handwriting speed was consistently faster than keyboarding speed across all ages. Only a small minority of children in years 5 and 6 had faster keyboarding than handwriting speed. Results showed that children's compositional quality was superior in the handwritten scripts as opposed to the keyboarded scripts. Keyboarded scripts were up to 2 years behind handwritten scripts in development. Writing by keyboard does not necessarily lead to improvements in script quality, compared with handwritten scripts. Explicit keyboarding instruction (touch‐typing) is needed to develop keyboarding fluency and unlock the full potential of the word processor for children's writing.
Examining a multidimensional model of student motivation and engagement using a construct validation approach
Authors: Martin Andrew J.
Published: September 2006

Background.This study seeks to examine a multidimensional model of student motivation and engagement using within‐ and between‐network construct validation approaches.

Aims.The study tests the first‐ and higher‐order factor structure of the motivation and engagement wheel and its corresponding measurement tool, the Motivation and Engagement Scale – High School (MES‐HS; formerly the Student Motivation and Engagement Scale).

Sample.The study draws upon data from 12,237 high school students from 38 Australian high schools.

Methods.The hypothesized 11‐factor first‐order structure and the four‐factor higher‐order structure, their relationship with a set of between‐network measures (class participation, enjoyment of school, educational aspirations), factor invariance across gender and year‐level, and the effects of age and gender are examined using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling.

Results.In terms of within‐network validity, (1) the data confirm that the 11‐factor and higher‐order factor models of motivation and engagement are good fitting and (2) multigroup tests showed invariance across gender and year levels. In terms of between‐network validity, (3) correlations with enjoyment of school, class participation and educational aspirations are in the hypothesized directions, and (4) girls reflect a more adaptive pattern of motivation and engagement, and year‐level findings broadly confirm hypotheses that middle high school students seem to reflect a less adaptive pattern of motivation and engagement.

Conclusion.The first‐ and higher‐order structures hold direct implications for educational practice and directions for future motivation and engagement research.
The effects of selective schooling and self‐concept on adolescents' academic aspiration: An examination of Dweck's self‐theory
Authors: Ahmavaara Anni. , Houston Diane M.
Published: September 2006

Background. Dweck has emphasized the role of pupils' implicit theories about intellectual ability in explaining variations in their engagement, persistence and achievement. She has also highlighted the role of confidence in one's intelligence as a factor influencing educational attainment.

Aim. The aim of this paper is to develop a model of achievement aspiration in adolescence and to compare young people who are educated at a selective grammar school with those who attend a non‐selective ‘secondary modern’ school.

Sample. The sample consisted of 856 English secondary school pupils in years 7 and 10 from two selective and two non‐selective secondary schools.

Method. Questionnaires were completed in schools.

Results. The findings are consistent with the model, showing that achievement aspiration is predicted directly by gender, school type and type of intelligence theory. Importantly, school type also affects aspirations indirectly, with effects being mediated by confidence in one's own intelligence and perceived academic performance. Intelligence theory also affects aspirations indirectly with effects being mediated by perceived academic performance, confidence and self‐esteem. Additionally, intelligence theory has a stronger effect on aspirations in the selective schools than in the non‐selective schools.

Conclusions. The findings provide substantial support for Dweck's self‐theory, showing that implicit theories are related to aspirations. However, the way in which theory of intelligence relates to age and gender suggests there may be important cross‐cultural or contextual differences not addressed by Dweck's theory. Further research should also investigate the causal paths between aspirations, implicit theories of intelligence and the impact of school selection.
Relations among competence beliefs, utility value, achievement goals, and effort in mathematics
Authors: Chouinard Roch. , Karsenti Thierry. , Roy Normand.
Published: September 2006

Background. Research has shown that motivation is a key factor in the learning process as well as in school achievement. In essence, a number of researchers have highlighted the close link between motivation and achievement‐related behaviours such as effort.

Aims. The present study aims to acquire more specific information concerning the relations between competence beliefs, utility value and achievement goals in mathematics among secondary school students, to further document the influence of social agents, and to better understand the relationships between these variables, as well as to effort.

Sample. Participants were 759 Grade 7 to Grade 11 students (389 males, 370 females).

Method. Structural equation modelling techniques were used to test a model of achievement‐related behaviours (effort) in mathematics based on support from social agents, competence beliefs, utility value and achievement goals. Several self‐reported scales were administered.

Results. Results indicate that effort in mathematics is mainly explained by mastery goals and competence beliefs. As for the role of social agents, results demonstrated that the perception of parental support chiefly explained variables associated with the valuing of mathematics while teachers' support acted most on competence beliefs.

Conclusions. Two main conclusions stem from our results. First, mastery goals have an important and significant impact on students' effort in the learning of mathematics. Second, the nature and the strength of the relationships between competence beliefs, utility value, achievement goals and effort are not significantly influenced by age and gender, at least in mathematics.
Learning and memory of factual content from narrative and expository text
Authors: Wolfe Michael B. W. , Mienko Joseph A.
Published: September 2006

Background. Research on the presentation of information in narrative versus expository text genres is inconclusive with respect to the question of which is more beneficial for student learning.

Aims. We examine the effect of presenting factual content in either narrative or expository genres on student learning. We also consider relevant prior knowledge and working memory capacity (WMC) as potential mediating variables.

Sample. Ninety university undergraduate students.

Methods. Subjects studied circulatory system content embedded in either narrative or expository texts. Prior circulatory system knowledge, knowledge improvement (learning) and free recall were assessed.

Results. Learning and recall did not differ as a function of text genre overall, but did interact with prior knowledge. Learning from the narrative and one expository text was optimal at intermediate levels of prior knowledge, with higher knowledge readers benefiting more from the expository text compared with the narrative text. Prior knowledge was positively related to recall for the expository texts, but unrelated for the narrative text. Subjects' WMC did not predict learning or recall.

Conclusions. Results suggest that narrative and expository processing differ with respect to integration of text content with prior knowledge.
Effects of prior assistance in using analogies on young children's unprompted analogical problem solving over time: A microgenetic study
Authors: Tunteler Erika , Resing Wilma C. M.
Published: September 2006

Background. Various studies on analogical problem solving have shown that children can be taught to use analogies within a single session, but it is not known whether they can be taught a strategy for using analogical problem solving that persists over a period of time.

Aim. Our study focused on the effects of prior assistance in analogy use on children's unprompted analogical problem solving over time.

Sample. Participants were 144, 5‐ to 7‐year‐old children from kindergarten and grade 1.

Methods. A four‐session microgenetic procedure was used. A number of children were given assistance in using analogies 1 week before the experiment started. Their analogy use over time was examined and compared with peers without such experiences.

Results and Conclusions. The results indicate that prior assistance in using analogies has a beneficial effect, which may last for several weeks, on analogical problem solving in children aged 6–7 years or even younger. The study also showed the use of analogies in the absence of instructions, and variability in task behaviour in all groups. Since these findings may have implications for instructional practice, the authors recommend a novel study in an educational environment and with tasks from a more educational domain.
Further evaluating the conditional decision rule for comparing two independent means
Authors: Hayes Andrew F. , Cai Li
Published: September 2006

Many books on statistical methods advocate a ‘conditional decision rule’ when comparing two independent group means. This rule states that the decision as to whether to use a ‘pooled variance’ test that assumes equality of variance or a ‘separate variance’ Welch t test that does not should be based on the outcome of a variance equality test. In this paper, we empirically examine the Type I error rate of the conditional decision rule using four variance equality tests and compare this error rate to the unconditional use of either of the t tests (i.e. irrespective of the outcome of a variance homogeneity test) as well as several resampling‐based alternatives when sampling from 49 distributions varying in skewness and kurtosis. Several unconditional tests including the separate variance test performed as well as or better than the conditional decision rule across situations. These results extend and generalize the findings of previous researchers who have argued that the conditional decision rule should be abandoned.
Generalized linear models with ordinally‐observed covariates
Authors: Johnson Timothy R.
Published: September 2006

An ordinally‐observed variable is a variable that is only partially observed through an ordinal surrogate. Although statistical models for ordinally‐observed response variables are well known, relatively little attention has been given to the problem of ordinally‐observed regressors. In this paper I show that if surrogates to ordinally‐observed covariates are used as regressors in a generalized linear model then the resulting measurement error in the covariates can compromise the consistency of point estimators and standard errors for the effects of fully‐observed regressors. To properly account for this measurement error when making inferences concerning the fully‐observed regressors, I propose a general modelling framework for generalized linear models with ordinally‐observed covariates. I discuss issues of model specification, identification, and estimation, and illustrate these with examples.
Multilevel component analysis
Authors: Timmerman Marieke E.
Published: September 2006

A general framework for the exploratory component analysis of multilevel data (MLCA) is proposed. In this framework, a separate component model is specified for each group of objects at a certain level. The similarities between the groups of objects at a given level can be expressed by imposing constraints on component models of the groups using the approach adopted in simultaneous component analysis. The constraints used are based on the loading matrices and on the covariances of the component scores of each group. MLCA is related to three‐way component analysis and to currently available multilevel structural equation models. It is shown that the latter are less flexible than MLCA. The use of MLCA is illustrated by means of an empirical example.
Avoiding degeneracy in metric unfolding by penalizing the intercept
Authors: Busing Frank M.T.A.
Published: September 2006

It has long been thought that degeneracy in unfolding only concerned non‐metric unfolding. Recently, Busing, Groenen, and Heiser have established that degeneracy occurs for all transformations that include estimation of an intercept and a slope. Consequently, degeneracy also plagues metric unfolding, since one member of the metric transformation family, the interval transformation, includes estimation of both an intercept and a slope. In this paper, a simple solution is proposed to the degeneracy problem for metric unfolding by penalizing for an undesirable intercept. An application of this approach will illustrate its potential.
A note on using alpha and stratified alpha to estimate the reliability of a test composed of item parcels
Authors: Rae Gordon
Published: September 2006

Several authors have suggested that prior to conducting a confirmatory factor analysis it may be useful to group items into a smaller number of item ‘parcels’ or ‘testlets’. The present paper mathematically shows that coefficient alpha based on these parcel scores will only exceed alpha based on the entire set of items if W, the ratio of the average covariance of items between parcels to the average covariance of items within parcels, is greater than unity. If W is less than unity, however, and errors of measurement are uncorrelated, then stratified alpha will be a better lower bound to the reliability of a measure than the other two coefficients. Stratified alpha are also equal to the true reliability of a test when items within parcels are essentially tau‐equivalent if one assumes that errors of measurement are not correlated.
Recovering stimuli from memory: A statistical method for linking discrimination and reproduction responses
Authors: Vevea Jack L.
Published: September 2006

Investigations of sensory memory have often relied on discrimination processes: participants judge whether a reference stimulus is identical to a remembered stimulus. Recently, investigators have used response modes in which participants directly reproduce stimuli. Findings using reproduction tasks have suggested new ways of thinking about biases that pervade psychophysics. To allow an assessment of whether results obtained using reproduction responses persevere for discrimination tasks, this paper presents a statistical model that links the two approaches. The model uses the pattern of discrimination judgements to estimate parameters that represent the means and standard deviations that would have occurred under a reproduction task. An analysis of stimuli that have been previously studied using reproduction responses illustrates the method. Simulations investigate bias and efficiency, large‐sample confidence intervals and the performance of likelihood‐ratio tests of the adequacy of special submodels.
Simple and multiple P‐splines regression with shape constraints
Authors: Bollaerts Kaatje , Eilers Paul H. C. , van Mechelen Iven
Published: September 2006

In many research areas, especially within social and behavioural sciences, the relationship between predictor and criterion variables is often assumed to have a particular shape, such as monotone, single‐peaked or U‐shaped. Such assumptions can be transformed into (local or global) constraints on the sign of thenth‐order derivative of the functional form. To check for such assumptions, we present a non‐parametric regression method, P‐splines regression, with additional asymmetric discrete penalties enforcing the constraints. We show that the corresponding loss function is convex and present a Newton–Raphson algorithm to optimize. Constrained P‐splines are illustrated with an application on monotonicity‐constrained regression with both one and two predictor variables, using data from research on the cognitive development of children.
Bayesian analysis for proportions with an independent background effect
Authors: Bi Jian
Published: September 2006

Conventional Bayesian analysis for proportions is not appropriate for proportions with a background effect, for example, for the proportion of correct responses in a sensory difference test using a forced‐choice method with a guessing probability. The main difficulty is that it is not reasonable to assume that a proportion with a background effect has a beta prior distribution. A generalized posterior distribution for proportions is derived in this paper. It includes the standard beta posterior distribution for a proportion without background effect as a special case. Bayesian inference and Bayesian sample size determination for proportions based on the generalized posterior distribution are discussed.
Reliability of multiple‐component measuring instruments: Improved evaluation in repeated measure designs
Authors: Raykov Tenko
Published: September 2006

A covariance structure analysis method for improved point and interval estimation of composite reliability in repeated measure designs is outlined that accounts for specificity variance. The approach also permits the testing of time‐invariance in reliability of multiple‐component instruments in terms of the ratio of ‘pure’ measurement error variance to observed scale score variance. In addition, the procedure allows interval estimation of the difference in composite reliability coefficients across assessment occasions. The method described is illustrated with data from a cognitive intervention study.
Bootstrapping the estimated latent distribution of the two‐parameter latent trait model
Authors: Knott M. , Tzamourani P.
Published: September 2006

This paper focuses on the two‐parameter latent trait model for binary data. Although the prior distribution of the latent variable is usually assumed to be a standard normal distribution, that prior distribution can be estimated from the data as a discrete distribution using a combination of EM algorithms and other optimization methods. We assess with what precision we can estimate the prior from the data, using simulations and bootstrapping. A novel calibration method is given to check that near optimality is achieved for the bootstrap estimates. We find that there is sufficient information on the prior distribution to be informative, and that the bootstrap method is reliable. We illustrate the bootstrap method for two sets of real data.
Asymptotic expansion of the distributions of the estimators in factor analysis under non‐normality
Authors: Ogasawara Haruhiko
Published: September 2006

Equations for the Edgeworth expansion of the distributions of the estimators in exploratory factor analysis and structural equation modeling are given. The equations cover the cases of non‐normal data, as well as normal ones with and without known first‐order asymptotic standard errors. When the standard errors are unknown, the distributions of the Studentized statistics are expanded. Methods of constructing confidence intervals of population parameters with arbitrary asymptotic confidence coefficients are given using the Cornish‐Fisher expansion. Simulations are performed to see the usefulness of the asymptotic expansions in exploratory factor analysis with rotated solutions and confirmatory factor analysis. The results show that asymptotic expansion gives substantial improvement of approximation to the exact distribution constructed by simulations over the usual normal approximation.
Robust step‐down tests for multivariate independent group designs
Authors: Lix Lisa M. , Fouladi Rachel T.
Published: September 2006

A composite step‐down procedure, in which a set of step‐down tests are summarized collectively with Fisher's combination statistic, was considered to test for multivariate mean equality in two‐group designs. An approximate degrees of freedom (ADF) composite procedure based on trimmed/Winsorized estimators and a non‐pooled estimate of error variance is proposed, and compared to a composite procedure based on trimmed/Winsorized estimators and a pooled estimate of error variance. The step‐down procedures were also compared to Hotelling's T2 and Johansen's ADF global procedure based on trimmed estimators in a simulation study. Type I error rates of the pooled step‐down procedure were sensitive to covariance heterogeneity in unbalanced designs; error rates were similar to those of Hotelling's T2 across all of the investigated conditions. Type I error rates of the ADF composite step‐down procedure were insensitive to covariance heterogeneity and less sensitive to the number of dependent variables when sample size was small than error rates of Johansen's test. The ADF composite step‐down procedure is recommended for testing hypotheses of mean equality in two‐group designs except when the data are sampled from populations with different degrees of multivariate skewness.
Feature selection in feature network models: Finding predictive subsets of features with the Positive Lasso
Authors: Frank Laurence E. , Heiser Willem J.
Published: September 2006

A set of features is the basis for the network representation of proximity data achieved by feature network models (FNMs). Features are binary variables that characterize the objects in an experiment, with some measure of proximity as response variable. Sometimes features are provided by theory and play an important role in the construction of the experimental conditions. In some research settings, the features are not known a priori. This paper shows how to generate features in this situation and how to select an adequate subset of features that takes into account a good compromise between model fit and model complexity, using a new version of least angle regression that restricts coefficients to be non‐negative, called the Positive Lasso. It will be shown that features can be generated efficiently with Gray codes that are naturally linked to the FNMs. The model selection strategy makes use of the fact that FNM can be considered as univariate multiple regression model. A simulation study shows that the proposed strategy leads to satisfactory results if the number of objects is less than or equal to 22. If the number of objects is larger than 22, the number of features selected by our method exceeds the true number of features in some conditions.
Decision making in the short and long run: Repeated gambles and rationality
Authors: Aloysius John A.
Published: September 2006

Experimental evidence indicates that decision makers who reject a single play of a gamble may accept repeated plays of that gamble. The rationality of this pattern of preference has been investigated beginning with Samuelson's colleague (SC) who gained notoriety in a well‐known paper. SC's pattern of preference is commonly viewed as a behavioural anomaly. Researchers from branches of psychology and economics have analysed the choice and, despite much debate, there remains considerable confusion. An axiomatic analysis of SC's choice has been used to motivate experimental studies in several disciplines. This paper identifies the axiomatic violation as that of an assumed rather than a normative condition. Therefore, contrary to popular belief, SC's choice is consistent with expected utility theory.
Computing inter‐rater reliability and its variance in the presence of high agreement
Authors: Gwet Kilem Li
Published: September 2006

Pi (π) and kappa (κ) statistics are widely used in the areas of psychiatry and psychological testing to compute the extent of agreement between raters on nominally scaled data. It is a fact that these coefficients occasionally yield unexpected results in situations known as the paradoxes of kappa. This paper explores the origin of these limitations, and introduces an alternative and more stable agreement coefficient referred to as the AC1coefficient. Also proposed are new variance estimators for the multiple‐rater generalized π and AC1statistics, whose validity does not depend upon the hypothesis of independence between raters. This is an improvement over existing alternative variances, which depend on the independence assumption. A Monte‐Carlo simulation study demonstrates the validity of these variance estimators for confidence interval construction, and confirms the value of AC1as an improved alternative to existing inter‐rater reliability statistics.
Local measures of association: Estimating the derivative of the regression line
Authors: Wilcox Rand R.
Published: September 2006

A local measure of association that allows both heteroscedasticity and a non‐linear association was developed during the 1990s. The basic goal is to measure the strength of the association between X and Y, given X, when Y=θ(X)+τ(X)ε for some unknown functions θ(X) and τ(X). Application of this method requires the estimation of the derivative of θ(X). The focus in this paper is on four alternatives to a very slight modification of the method used by Doksum et al. when estimating this derivative. The main result is that in simulations, a certain robust analogue of their method dominates in terms of mean squared error, even under normality. The bias of the method is found to be small but a little larger than the bias associated with the method used by Doksum et al. The method is based in part on bootstrap bagging followed by a lowess smooth.
Children and adults recall the names of highly familiar faces faster than semantic information
Authors: Calderwood L. , Burton A. M.
Published: September 2006

Adults find it harder to remember the names of familiar people than other biographical information such as occupation or nationality. It has been suggested that the opposite effect occurs in children (Scanlan & Johnston, 1997). We failed to replicate the effects found by Scanlan and Johnston and instead found that children were slower to match a name than an occupation to a famous face (Experiment 1). In Experiments 2 and 3, however, we show a temporal advantage for names in both adults and children when highly familiar faces are used. This is the case for famous and personally known faces. These results show that the speed of name retrieval is influenced by familiarity in the same way in both children and adults and indicate that children do not represent knowledge for familiar people differently from adults. The implications of these results for current models of name retrieval difficulties are discussed.
Aesthetic activities and aesthetic attitudes: Influences of education, background and personality on interest and involvement in the arts
Authors: McManus I. C. , Furnham A.
Published: September 2006

There have been few studies of why some people are frequently involved in aesthetic activities such as going to the theatre, reading or playing musical instruments, whereas others are less involved. This study assesses the broad roles of education, personality and demographic factors such as social class, age and sex. More aesthetic activity was associated with music and art education, whereas science education had a substantial negative relationship with aesthetic activity, both directly and also indirectly via reduced art education. More aesthetic activity was particularly related to higher scores on the personality factor of openness, and also to lower scores on agreeableness and conscientiousness. Higher parental social class was also associated with more aesthetic activity, as also was lower age. Sex had no relationship to aesthetic activity, as neither did masculinity−femininity. Positive aesthetic attitudes were also related moderately to aesthetic activity, but were particularly strongly related to openness to experience, and somewhat less to extraversion. Class, age and sex had no direct relationship to aesthetic attitudes.
Does collaborative remembering reduce false memories?
Authors: Takahashi Masanobu
Published: September 2006

Collaborative remembering refers to recall by groups rather than by an individual. Three experiments investigated whether, relative to individual remembering, collaborative remembering decreased correct recall and false recall using the Deese‐Roediger‐McDermott paradigm. Participants were first asked to study and recall five lists of 15 words that were each semantically associated with a critical non‐presented word. Half the participants recalled the words by themselves, while the remaining half were assigned to pairs and collaboratively recalled the words. In Experiment 1, pairs produced the same number of false or correct words as individuals who were tested alone. In Experiment 2, the interpersonal closeness of the groups was also manipulated: friends and pairs who were not friends were assigned to the collaborative groups. Both friends and non‐friends produced fewer false or correct words than individuals. Experiment 3, in which the performance of the individuals and non‐friend pairs were compared using a recall test of the same 75 words as the previous experiments, replicated the results of Experiment 2. These results are discussed in terms of the retrieval‐strategy disruption.
Which factors influence number updating in working memory? The effects of size distance and suppression
Authors: Carretti Barbara , Cornoldi Cesare , Pelegrina Santiago L.
Published: September 2006

Updating information in working memory is a critical process which makes possible to have available, at every moment, the information most relevant for mind operations. However, the specific mechanisms underlying the updating process have rarely been analysed. This paper examines the importance of two of the mechanisms implicated in a numerical updating task: item comparison and item substitution. The item comparison mechanism was studied by manipulating the size distance between items. The item substitution mechanism was investigated by increasing/decreasing the number of updates within trials. Furthermore, in order to examine the effects of time constraints, presentation rate was manipulated. Over three experiments, the results obtained highlighted that updating performance is mainly influenced by suppression request, even when the presentation rate is self‐paced. However, errors depend on the distance between items. The implications of the results for the understanding of updating are discussed.