Sampling behaviour in estimating predictive validity in the context of selection and latent variable modelling: A Monte Carlo study

While the effect of selection in predictive validity studies has long been recognized and discussed in psychometric studies, little consideration has been given to this problem in the context of latent variable models. In a recent paper, Muthén & Hsu (1993) proposed and compared estimators of predictive validity of a multifactorial test. Both selectivity and measurement error were considered in the estimation of predictive validity. The purpose of the present paper is to expand on Muthén & Hsu (1993) by examining and comparing the sampling behaviour of three estimators for predictive validity, LQL (listwise, quasi-likelihood estimator), FQL (full, quasi-likelihood estimator) and FS (factor score estimator), using a Monte Carlo approach. Effects of selection procedures, selection ratios and sample sizes on the sampling behaviours of the estimators are also investigated. The results show that FQL and FS are the two preferred estimators and each has different strengths and weaknesses. A real data application is presented to illustrate the practical implementation of the estimators.     

Efficiency of local versus standard MMPI norms: a comment

This note shows that evidence considered by Wooten (1984) to support claims of diagnostic superiority of standard over local MMPI norms, may mainly reflect the fact that a large proportion of the group tested by Wooten's consisted of persons with emotional, behavioral problems. Reevaluation of Wooten's data suggests a range of conditions under which Wooten's diagnostic criterion used with local norms is superior to the same criterion used with standard norms, and another range of conditions under which this criterion used with either local or standard norms is inferior to base rates.     

Emotional reactions to scandals: When does moral character make a difference?

A scandal can evoke public outrage when it is widely publicized and involves an individual who is perceived to have a high level of cultural representativeness. Two experiments showed that when the scandalous target's moral character was highlighted, emotional responses towards the target were least negative when the scandal was widely circulated and when the target was seen as a representative of his culture. These results suggest that when a cultural symbol is implicated in a widely‐circulated scandal, the negative emotions directed towards the scandalous individual can be alleviated when the public remains confident in his or her commitment to morality.     

Interword spacing in Chinese text layout

Three experiments using Chinese text were conducted to investigate word spacing and its effect on reading performance. In Exp. 1, a sonogram detector was used to analyze interword and intercharacter (within a word) time intervals from text read aloud by professional TV broadcasters versus college graduates. The results showed interword intervals were significantly longer than intercharacter intervals, indicating that interword spacing has psychological reality in speech. Exp. 2 examined the effect on reading performance due to separating the characters that compose a word. Separating the characters of a word did not decrease reading accuracy but did result in significantly longer reading times. Exp. 3 explored the effect of word spacing in Chinese sentences on reading performance. Analysis showed that word spacing did not affect reading accuracy, but half character and whole-character spacing significantly reduced reading time. The results of the present study suggest that word spacing in Chinese text layout enhances reading performance. Word spacing may help the reader to segment more quickly a string of characters into words and reduce the likelihood of misinterpretation. Also, ambiguity of sentence structure severely degraded reading accuracy. The implications of the results for word spacing design in Chinese text are discussed.     

Effects of directionality of significance tests on the bias of accessible effect sizes

The proportion of studies that use one-tailed statistical significance tests (pi) in a population of studies targeted by a meta-analysis can affect the bias of the sample effect sizes (sample ESs, or ds) that are accessible to the meta-analyst. H. C. Kraemer, C. Gardner, J. O. Brooks, and J. A. Yesavage (1998) found that, assuming pi = 1.0, for small studies (small Ns) the overestimation bias was large for small population ESs (delta < or = 0.2) and reached a maximum for the smallest population ES (viz., delta = 0). The present article shows (with a minor modification of H. C. Kraemer et al.'s model) that when pi = 0, the small-N bias of accessible sample ESs is relatively small for delta < or = 0.2, and a minimum (in fact, nonexistent) for delta = 0. Implications are discussed for interpretations of meta-analyses of (a) therapy efficacy and therapy effectiveness studies, (b) comparative outcome studies, and (c) studies targeting small but important population ESs.     

Episodic representations support early semantic learning: evidence from midazolam induced amnesia

Current controversy exists regarding the role of episodic representations in the formation of long-term semantic memories. Using the drug midazolam to induce temporary amnesia we tested participants' memories for newly learned facts in a semantic cue condition or an episodic and semantic cue condition. Following midazolam administration, memory performance was superior in the episodic and semantic condition, suggesting early semantic learning is supported by episodic representations.     

Psychometric properties of the life events checklist

The Life Events Checklist (LEC), a measure of exposure to potentially traumatic events, was developed at the National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) concurrently with the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) to facilitate the diagnosis of PTSD. Although the CAPS is recognized as the gold standard in PTSD symptom assessment, the psychometric soundness of the LEC has never been formally evaluated. The studies reported here describe the performance of the LEC in two samples: college undergraduates and combat veterans. The LEC exhibited adequate temporal stability, good convergence with an established measure of trauma history -- the Traumatic Life Events Questionnaire (TLEQ) -- and was comparable to the TLEQ in associations with variables known to be correlated with traumatic exposure in a sample of undergraduates. In a clinical sample of combat veterans, the LEC was significantly correlated, in the predicted directions, with measures of psychological distress and was strongly associated with PTSD symptoms.     

Stability and transitions in mother-infant face-to-face communication during the first 6 months: a microhistorical approach

In this study the authors attempted to unravel the relational, dynamical, and historical nature of mother-infant communication during the first 6 months. Thirteen mothers and their infants were videotaped weekly from 4 to 24 weeks during face-to-face interactions. Three distinct patterns of mother-infant communication were identified: symmetrical, asymmetrical, and unilateral. Guided by a dynamic systems perspective, the authors explored the stability of and transitions between these communication patterns. Findings from event history analysis showed that (a) there are regularly recurring dyadic communication patterns in early infancy, (b) these recurring patterns show differential stabilities and likelihoods of transitions, (c) dynamic stability in dyadic communication is shaped not only by individual characteristics (e.g., infant sex and maternal parity) but also by the dyad's communication history, and (d) depending on their recency, communication histories varying in temporal proximity exert differential effects on the self-organization processes of a dyadic system.     

Timed picture naming in seven languages

Timed picture naming was compared in seven languages that vary along dimensions known to affect lexical access. Analyses over items focused on factors that determine cross-language universals and cross-language disparities. With regard to universals, number of alternative names had large effects on reaction time within and across languages after target-name agreement was controlled, suggesting inhibitory effects from lexical competitors. For all the languages, word frequency and goodness of depiction had large effects, but objective picture complexity did not. Effects of word structure variables (length, syllable structure, compounding, and initial frication) varied markedly over languages. Strong cross-language correlations were found in naming latencies, frequency, and length. Other-language frequency effects were observed (e.g., Chinese frequencies predicting Spanish reaction times) even after within-language effects were controlled (e.g., Spanish frequencies predicting Spanish reaction times). These surprising cross-language correlations challenge widely held assumptions about the lexical locus of length and frequency effects, suggesting instead that they may (at least in part) reflect familiarity and accessibility at a conceptual level that is shared over languages.