Racial discrimination and the moderating effects of racial and ethnic socialization on the mental health of Asian American youth

This study investigates trajectories of racial discrimination, racial and ethnic socialization (RES), and their interaction effects with social positions (nativity and gender) on mental health. A longitudinal study of 786 Filipino American (FA) and Korean American (KA) youth from the Midwestern United States (M_age.Wave1 = 15) confirmed that discrimination increased and significantly contributed to the upward trend of mental health distress, whereas the impact of RES differed by its type and by ethnicity. For example, promotion of mistrust and ethnic-heritage socialization were protective among U.S.-born FA youth, but for KA youth, preparation for bias was protective regardless of nativity and gender. This study highlights the importance of considering social positions to better understand the role of RES in youth psychological adjustment.     

Differential Item Functioning Effect Size From the Multigroup Confirmatory Factor Analysis for a Meta-Analysis: A Simulation Study

This study presents a new approach to synthesizing differential item functioning (DIF) effect size: First, using correlation matrices from each study, we perform a multigroup confirmatory factor analysis (MGCFA) that examines measurement invariance of a test item between two subgroups (i.e., focal and reference groups). Then we synthesize, across the studies, the differences in the estimated factor loadings between the two subgroups, resulting in a meta-analytic summary of the MGCFA effect sizes (MGCFA-ES). The performance of this new approach was examined using a Monte Carlo simulation, where we created 108 conditions by four factors: (1) three levels of item difficulty, (2) four magnitudes of DIF, (3) three levels of sample size, and (4) three types of correlation matrix (tetrachoric, adjusted Pearson, and Pearson). Results indicate that when MGCFA is fitted to tetrachoric correlation matrices, the meta-analytic summary of the MGCFA-ES performed best in terms of bias and mean square error values, 95% confidence interval coverages, empirical standard errors, Type I error rates, and statistical power; and reasonably well with adjusted Pearson correlation matrices. In addition, when tetrachoric correlation matrices are used, a meta-analytic summary of the MGCFA-ES performed well, particularly, under the condition that a high difficulty item with a large DIF was administered to a large sample size. Our result offers an option for synthesizing the magnitude of DIF on a flagged item across studies in practice.     

A meta‐analysis of Tier 2 interventions implemented within School‐Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports

This meta‐analysis synthesized 26 published single‐case design (SCD) studies on Tier 2 behavior interventions implemented within the educational framework of school‐wide positive behavioral interventions and supports. We used Tau‐U indices to determine the overall magnitudes of effect of the Tier 2 behavior interventions and the potential variables that moderate improved student behavioral outcomes. The 26 studies that were analyzed included a total of 243 student participants. The studies were evaluated to determine whether and to what extent they met What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) SCD standards. Of these, 10 studies were confirmed as meeting WWC SCD standards with or without reservations. Notable findings were that outcomes for students in kindergarten and secondary grade levels were limited, and insufficient screening methods were used to identify and select students needing Tier 2 interventions. The results indicate that the literature reports Tier 2 interventions with effect sizes ranging from 0.26 to 0.98. Average effect size for social skills instruction was found to be large, whereas Check‐in/Check‐out, group contingency, and intervention packages had medium effect sizes. Moderator analyses indicated different effect sizes across intervention types, outcomes, and implementers. The results are discussed in relation to implications for practice, limitations, and future research.     

Factor structure and factorial invariance of the Career Adapt-Abilities Scale across Japanese and South Korean college students

International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance - The Career Adapt-Abilities Scale (CAAS) has been validated in several East Asian countries, but the measurement equivalence of its...     

General auditory processing, Chinese tone processing, English phonemic processing and English reading skill: a comparison between Chinese-English and Korean-English bilingual children

In the present study, we investigated the relationship between general auditory processing, Chinese tone processing, English phonemic processing and English reading skill in a group of Chinese-English bilingual children with a tonal L1 and Korean-English counterparts with a non-tonal L1. We found that general auditory processing contributed to variance in English word reading skill for Chinese children after controlling for Chinese tone and English phoneme deletion skill. English phonemic processing, on the other hand, explained a significant amount of unique variance in English reading for Korean children after controlling for general auditory and Chinese tone skill. These findings suggest that Chinese children relied more on general auditory processing in reading English, whereas Korean children relied more on phonemic skill in reading English. These findings are discussed in terms of the impact of cross-language differences in bilingual reading acquisition.     

An introduction to latent growth models: analysis of repeated measures physical performance data

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the Latent Growth Model (LGM) to researchers in exercise and sport science. Although the LGM has several merits over traditional analysis techniques in analyzing change and was first introduced almost 20 years ago, it is still underused in exercise and sport science research. This statistical model can be applied to any repeated measures data, but it is most useful when one has an a priori hypothesis about the patterns of change. The strengths of latent growth modeling include: (a) both individual and group levels of change are estimated, (b) either a linear or a curvilinear trajectory can represent individual change, (c) occasions of measurement need not be equally spaced, (d) the statistical model can account for measurement errors, (e) the model can easily include multiple predictors or correlates of change, and (f) as in general structural equation models, statistical models are flexible and allow one to extend the basic idea in several ways, such as comparing changes between groups and examining the change in multivariate latentfactors. In this paper, the basics and an extension of latent growth modeling are explained, and examples with longitudinal physical performance data are presented, along with detailed analysis procedures and considerations.     

Decision making: Influence of features and presentation mode upon generation of alternatives

Decision making can be defined as the process of making reasoned choices among alternatives based upon judgments consistent with the values of the decision maker. Models describing decision making generally include: identification of the problem, collection of relevant information, generation of alternatives, identification of consequences of alternatives, and selection of alternatives. This research focuses on the ability of children to generate alternatives in decision-making tasks. The problem was to determine the differential effects of the number of features of a decision-making situation in interview and computer-simulation modes on the number of alternatives children generate. The study involved 208 children with equal numbers of 2nd and 4th grade boys and girls. Each child responded to three decision-making situations either in an interview or computer-simulation mode. The three situations varied on the number of features of the award objects. An increase in the number of features (color) of the award objects (jelly beans) in a decision-making situation increased the number of alternatives generated. The children in this study generated more alternatives in the interview setting than with the computer simulation.     

Detection of Differential Item Functioning in Multiple Groups

Detection of differential item functioning (DIF) is most often done between two groups of examinees under item response theory. It is sometimes important, however, to determine whether DIF is present in more than two groups. In this article we present a method for detection of DIF in multiple groups. The method is closely related to Lard's chi-square for comparing vectors of item parameters estimated in two groups. An example using real data is provided.