Application of Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling to Evaluate the Academic Motivation Scale

In this research, the authors examined the construct validity of scores of the Academic Motivation Scale using exploratory structural equation modeling. Study 1 and Study 2 involved 1,416 college students and 4,498 high school students, respectively. First, results of both studies indicated that the factor structure tested with exploratory structural equation modeling provides better fit to the data than the one tested with confirmatory factor analysis. Second, the factor structure was gender invariant in the exploratory structural equation modeling framework. Third, the pattern of convergent and divergent correlations among Academic Motivation Scale factors was more in line with theoretical expectations when computed with exploratory structural equation modeling rather than confirmatory factor analysis. Fourth, the configuration of convergent and divergent correlations connecting each Academic Motivation Scale factors to a validity criterion was more in line with theoretical expectations with exploratory structural equation modeling than with confirmatory factor analysis.     

Teachers’ Commitment and psychological well-being: implications of self-beliefs for teaching in Hong Kong

Despite ample research on commitment in industrial settings, there has been no systematic attempt to investigate outcomes associated with teacher commitment. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the relationship between teacher commitment and psychological well-being in the work place using questionnaires. Hong Kong teachers (N?=?857) participated. Hierarchical regression analyses were used to investigate how the three aspects of commitment pertaining to the organisation and occupation predicted relevant outcomes. Results showed that affective and normative commitment positively predicted psychological well-being in the work place: interpersonal fit at work, thriving at work, feeling of competency, perceived recognition at work, desire for involvement at work and job satisfaction. Continuance commitment was a negative predictor of some outcomes. Results of the current study provide support to Meyer’s 3?×?2 factor model of commitment. Findings are discussed in relation to the situation of teachers in the Hong Kong context.     

Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling,Integrating CFA and EFA: Application to Students' Evaluations of University Teaching

This study is a methodological-substantive synergy, demonstrating the power and flexibility of exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM) methods that integrate confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses (CFA and EFA), as applied to substantively important questions based on multidimentional students' evaluations of university teaching (SETs). For these data, there is a well established ESEM structure but typical CFA models do not fit the data and substantially inflate correlations among the nine SET factors (median rs = .34 for ESEM, .72 for CFA) in a way that undermines discriminant validity and usefulness as diagnostic feedback. A 13-model taxonomy of ESEM measurement invariance is proposed, showing complete invariance (factor loadings, factor correlations, item uniquenesses, item intercepts, latent means) over multiple groups based on the SETs collected in the first and second halves of a 13-year period. Fully latent ESEM growth models that unconfounded measurement error from communality showed almost no linear or quadratic effects over this 13-year period. Latent multiple indicators multiple causes models showed that relations with background variables (workload/difficulty, class size, prior subject interest, expected grades) were small in size and varied systematically for different ESEM SET factors, supporting their discriminant validity and a construct validity interpretation of the relations. A new approach to higher order ESEM was demonstrated, but was not fully appropriate for these data. Based on ESEM methodology, substantively important questions were addressed that could not be appropriately addressed with a traditional CFA approach.     

Right hemisphere dysfunction in ADHD: visual hemispatial inattention and clinical subtype

The relationship between right hemisphere dysfunction and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) remains controversial. We administered a random letter cancellation test to 58 carefully selected adult patients meeting DSM-IV criteria for ADHD and 29 age- and education-matched controls. Patients with ADHD had a higher mean omission rate on the left side than the controls, and a greater percentage of ADHD patients than controls made more omissions on the left than on the right (L > R errors). ADHD patients who made L > R errors had lower performance IQ scores than ADHD patients who did not make L > R errors. However, ADHD patients who made L > R errors did not differ from ADHD patients who did not make L > R errors in ADHD subtype, medication response, or neuropsychological measures of attention, executive function, verbal memory, nonverbal memory, or academic achievement. Patients without a family history of ADHD were more likely to make L > R errors than patients with a family history of ADHD. This study provides support for the concept of right hemisphere dysfunction in a subset of patients with ADHD. However, ADHD patients who make L > R errors do not appear to represent a distinct clinical subgroup in terms of medication response, ADHD subtype, or neuropsychological test performance.     

Further Reflections on Disentangling Shape and Level Effects in Person-Centered Analyses: An Illustration Exploring the Dimensionality of Psychological Health

Morin and Marsh (2015) proposed a methodological framework to disentangle shape and level effects in latent profile analyses. We discuss limitations of this framework (based on a logic similar to that of higher-order measurement models), and suggest that these limitations are easily solved by a more thorough examination of the variable-centered measurement models underlying profile indicators. This study presents complementary variable- and person-centered approaches aiming to assess the dimensionality of psychometric constructs. Psychometric measures often assess separate conceptually-related facets of global overarching constructs, based on the assumption that these overarching constructs exist as global entities including specificities mapped by the facets. The framework proposed here explicitly models this dimensionality in both variable- and person-centered analyses. To illustrate this revised psychometric framework, we use ratings of psychological health collected from 1,232 teachers, and show how this revised framework provides a clearer picture of teachers’ profiles of psychological health.     

Determining friction and effective loading for sled sprinting

Understanding the impact of friction in sled sprinting allows the quantification of kinetic outputs and the effective loading experienced by the athlete. This study assessed changes in the coefficient of friction (µ_k) of a sled sprint-training device with changing mass and speed to provide a means of quantifying effective loading for athletes. A common sled equipped with a load cell was towed across an athletics track using a motorised winch under variable sled mass (33.1–99.6 kg) with constant speeds (0.1 and 0.3 m · s^?1), and with constant sled mass (55.6 kg) and varying speeds (0.1–6.0 m · s^?1). Mean force data were analysed, with five trials performed for each condition to assess the reliability of measures. Variables were determined as reliable (ICC > 0.99, CV < 4.3%), with normal-force/friction-force and speed/coefficient of friction relationships well fitted with linear (R² = 0.994–0.995) and quadratic regressions (R² = 0.999), respectively (P < 0.001). The linearity of composite friction values determined at two speeds, and the range in values from the quadratic fit (µ_k = 0.35–0.47) suggested µ_k and effective loading were dependent on instantaneous speed on athletics track surfaces. This research provides a proof-of-concept for the assessment of friction characteristics during sled towing, with a practical example of its application in determining effective loading and sled-sprinting kinetics. The results clarify effects of friction during sled sprinting and improve the accuracy of loading applications in practice and transparency of reporting in research.     

Evidence‐Based Practices: Applications of Concrete Representational Abstract Framework across Math Concepts for Students with Mathematics Disabilities

Students with mathematics disabilities (MD) experience difficulties with both conceptual and procedural knowledge of different math concepts across grade levels. Research shows that concrete representational abstract framework of instruction helps to bridge this gap for students with MD. In this article, we provide an overview of this strategy embedded within the explicit instruction framework. We highlight effective practices for each component of the framework across different mathematical strands. Implications for practice are also discussed and a detailed case study is provided.