Using a Taxonomy of Differential Step Functioning to Improve the Interpretation of DIF in Polytomous Items: An Illustration

The assessment of differential item functioning (DIF) in polytomous items addresses between-group differences in measurement properties at the item level, but typically does not inform which score levels may be involved in the DIF effect. The framework of differential step functioning (DSF) addresses this issue by examining between-group differences in the measurement properties at each step underlying the polytomous response variable. The pattern of the DSF effects across the steps of the polytomous response variable can assume several different forms, and the different forms can have different implications for the sensitivity of DIF detection and the final interpretation of the causes of the DIF effect. In this article we propose a taxonomy of DSF forms, establish guidelines for using the form of DSF to help target and guide item content review and item revision, and provide procedural rules for using the frameworks of DSF and DIF in tandem to yield a comprehensive assessment of between-group measurement equivalence in polytomous items.     

Estudio comparado del comportamiento de niños educados en medio familiar y niños educados en instituciones. Una perspectiva etológica

Resumen

Se ha realizado un estudio observacional con metodología etológica en niños de 4–5 años: Un grupo de 5 Ss. procedentes de una Casa Cuna y otro grupo de 7 Ss. procedentes de un ambiente familiar. El muestreo se llevó a cabo en un hábitat común para ambos grupos: el recreo de un preescolar, ubicado en otra zona, y en condiciones de juego libre, aunque controlado por monitores adultos. Los resultados obtenidos sugieren la existencia de diferencias entre ambos grupos, que podrían implicar una manera diferente de integración social de los niños cuyo hábitat primario no es la casa familiar, aunque no es posible establecer una relación de causalidad directa con la institucionalización.     

A day in the life of a statistical knowledge for teaching course

The article illustrates how statistical content and pedagogical reasoning were taught in tandem in an undergraduate course. A typical day in the course is described. It is also suggested that practising teachers can benefit from strategies used in the course.     

An examination of the relationship between verbal aggressiveness,conflict management strategies,and conflict interaction goals

The purpose of this investigation was to explore the relationship between respondents' trait verbal aggressiveness, conflict management strategies and conflict interaction goals. Data were collected from 105 undergraduate students at a small private affluent southeastern university. Participants were asked to recall a dispute that they had had with a close friend. They completed the OCCI, verbal aggressiveness, and conflict goals measures. Results indicated that verbal aggressiveness was associated in predictable ways with participants' conflict strategies. There also was a substantial and significant negative relationship between verbal aggressiveness and concerns about relational goals during conflicts. These results establish a foundation for future lines of research regarding conflict goals and extend previous investigations regarding verbal aggressiveness.     

Ambidexterity lost? Compromising innovation and the exploration/exploitation plan

Although innovation is central to a firm's success and a top priority for most technology managers, firms commonly report disappointment that innovation outcomes do not match their original plans. This paper examines the difference in intended innovation and realized innovation using an exploration/exploitation framing. Its focus is on changes to defined innovation plans that occur after planning phases end. Extant literature and field research form the basis for hypotheses that are then tested using a large scale survey of an entire population of small and medium-sized high-technology enterprises (SMEs).Findings of compromised exploration in favor of exploitation, during the development phase, is quantified. Firms divert resources away from novel emergent exploration and into existing product development, thereby undercutting innovation plans. Intended innovation, established during the planning stages, is found to be compromised.Our hypotheses, that agency and resource dependence underpin a shifting between explorative and exploitative development, have support. The paper's theoretical contributions include the application of novel agency and resource dependence perspectives onto innovation. It informs ambidexterity research by indicating where, how much, and why erosion in the balance of exploration/exploitation occurs and provides new avenues for research into low innovation outcomes.     

Teaching social studies to learning disabled high school students: effects of a hypertext study guide

This study investigated the effectiveness of a computer-based study guide using hypertext software to increase textbook comprehension among four learning disabled students enrolled in a remedial high school social studies class. The program provided four levels of instructional cues that matched students to their highest level of independent interaction with a textbook passage, based on item-to-item responses to computer-generated questions. Using alternative forms of a 45-item multiple-choice test, a pre-test/post-test design was arranged, with a retention test given after a 30-day period. Fifteen questions were designated as control items by placing them in the 45-item tests but not in the computer treatment. The computer program consisted of three separate lessons administered across consecutive class sessions, with each followed by a written 15-item multiple choice test containing 10 computer questions and 5 control items. Results indicated a significant gain for pupils on computer items from pre-test to post-test and from pre-test to retention test, while no significant change occurred on control items across measures. A single-case analysis revealed a consistent relationship between gain scores on computer items, reading time on computer, and the number of instructional cues required by students. Two types of non-linear pathways that teacher might consider when constructing study guides are discussed.