A Systematic Evaluation and Comparison Between Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling and Bayesian Structural Equation Modeling

In this study, we contrast two competing approaches, not previously compared, that balance the rigor of CFA/SEM with the flexibility to fit realistically complex data. Exploratory SEM (ESEM) is claimed to provide an optimal compromise between EFA and CFA/SEM. Alternatively, a family of three Bayesian SEMs (BSEMs) replace fixed-zero estimates with informative, small-variance priors for different subsets of parameters: cross-loadings (CL), residual covariances (RC), or CLs and RCs (CLRC). In Study 1, using three simulation studies, results showed that (1) BSEM-CL performed more closely to ESEM; (2) BSEM-CLRC did not provide more accurate model estimation compared with BSEM-CL; (3) BSEM-RC provided unstable estimation; and (4) different specifications of targeted values in ESEM and informative priors in BSEM have significant impacts on model estimation. The real data analysis (Study 2) showed that the differences in estimation between different models were largely consistent with those in Study1 but somewhat smaller.     

Investigation of guided school tours,student learning,and science reform recommendations at a museum of natural history

A study of docent‐led guided school tours at a museum of natural history was investigated. Researchers engaged in naturalistic inquiry to describe how natural history content was conveyed to students and what students gained from this model of touring. They also investigated how the content and pedagogy within the guided tour complemented recommendations from formal science standards documents and informal learning literature. About 30 visiting school groups in Grades 2–8 were observed. Teachers (n = 30) and select students (n = 85) were interviewed. Researchers found that tours were organized in a didactic way that conflicted with science education reform documents and research related to learning within informal contexts. Students' responses to interview questions indicated high satisfaction with the tours but low levels of science learning. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 40: 200–218, 2003     

Longitudinal stability of latent means and individual differences: A unified approach

We examined the stability of responses to a multi‐item self‐esteem scale collected on five occasions over an 8‐year period. A wide variety of approaches were critically examined that considered the stability of means, individual differences (i.e., test‐retest correlations), and factor structures using traditional approaches (e.g., ANOVA and correlations) and structural equation models. Structural equation models based on multiple indicators provided a unified analytic approach for evaluating different aspects of stability and offered important advantages over traditional approaches. We describe a hierarchy of invariances and the nature of interpretations that are justified by different patterns of factor structure invariance associated with each level. We conclude that the assumptions underlying the typical repeated‐measures ANOVA approach to testing mean differences in longitudinal data are far more restrictive, less easily tested, and less likely to be met than those in the structural equation modeling approach advocated here, and that the use of ANOVA for this purpose requires a huge leap of faith that can rarely be justified on logical or empirical grounds.     

Self-belief does make a difference: a reciprocal effects model of the causal ordering of physical self-concept and gymnastics performance

A large body of research in support of the reciprocal effects model of causal ordering demonstrates that prior academic self-concept predicts subsequent academic achievement beyond what can be explained in terms of prior achievement. Here we evaluate the generalizability of this support for the reciprocal effects model to a physical activity context in which achievement is reflected in gymnastics skills on a standardized gymnastics performance test evaluated by expert judges. Based on the responses of 376 adolescents collected at the start (T1) and end (T2) of a gymnastics training programme, there is support for a reciprocal effects model in which there are significant paths leading from both T1 gymnastics self-concept to T2 gymnastics skills and from T1 gymnastics skills to T2 self-concept. Although there were gender and age effects (girls and older participants had better gymnastics skills, boys had higher self-concepts), multiple group structural equation models indicated that support for the reciprocal effects model generalized over responses by boys and girls. In summary, self-concept and performance are both determinants and consequences of each other.     

Candidate-Issue Positioning in the Context of Presidential Debates

This paper presents an analysis of three presidential candidates, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Ross Perot, who participated in the 1992 presidential debates. The relationships among the three candidates and between each candidate and the issues were examined using semantic network analysis. The results indicate a two-against-one strategy that was issue specific. The candidates teamed up in different pairs, depending on the topic at hand. The results also show the issues that the candidates emphasized most. Specifically, Clinton and Perot had more focused communication consistent with their respective campaign themes of domestic and financial concerns, while Bush did not emphasize any one particular theme. The implications of these differences are discussed, as are the theoretical and practical implications for debater tactics and the strategic use of language for emphasizing political platforms.