Reliability of the Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths-Mental Health (CANS-MH) Scale

We examined the interrater reliability of the Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths-Mental Health (CANS-MH) scale among researchers and between researchers and clinicians. All children presenting to a treatment facility for either protective or mental health needs were eligible to be included in the study. As part of standard assessment procedure, all children entering the facility were described by caseworkers using the CANS-MH. A random sample of 60 cases was selected and researchers made retrospective assessments using the CANS-MH based on chart review. Results of the interrater reliability support previous findings that the CANS-MH is a reliable measure of clinical and psychosocial needs and strengths. Results also suggest that ratings on the CANS-MH based on medical record abstraction by researchers relate to ratings performed by clinical staff, demonstrating the clinical and research utility of the CANS-MH. The CANS-MH can be used reliably to assess the type and severity of problem presentation, risk behaviors, functioning, care intensity and organization, caregiver capacity and strengths among children with protective and mental health needs. In addition, items of the CANS-MH appear to be reliable supporting the use of these items individually. Findings are relevant to the ongoing delivery of clinical services, monitoring of quality assurance, and outcomes.     

智慧测量三十年:两种测量范式及新发展

准确且高效地测量智慧是智慧研究的基石。自柏林智慧模式于1990年首创智慧测量法后,围绕如何测量智慧形成两种测量范式:最佳行为测量取向和典型行为测量取向。文中综述了两种测量范式的新发展、优势和不足。未来宜重点测量“德才一体”的综合心理素质和借助这一素质创造出的产品; 兼顾自我报告、行为观察和认知神经科学的方法测量智慧。     

解释性项目反应理论模型：理论与应用

解释性项目反应理论模型(Explanatory Item Response Theory Models, EIRTM)是指基于广义线性混合模型和非线性混合模型构建的项目反应理论(Item Response Theory, IRT)模型。EIRTM能在IRT模型的基础上直接加入预测变量, 从而解决各类测量问题。首先介绍EIRTM的相关概念和参数估计方法, 然后展示如何使用EIRTM处理题目位置效应、测验模式效应、题目功能差异、局部被试依赖和局部题目依赖, 接着提供实例对EIRTM的使用进行说明, 最后对EIRTM的不足之处和应用前景进行讨论。     

Perceived collective efficacy to stop aggression at school: A validation of an Italian and a Swedish version of a scale for adolescents

Collective efficacy to stop peer aggression in the school context refers to adolescents’ beliefs about the capability of students and teachers in their school to work together to counteract aggressive behaviours among peers. This study presents the Italian and Swedish versions of a recently developed scale to measure the construct. Factorial structure and measurement invariance of the scale were assessed in two samples of adolescents aged 10–15 years. The findings support both a two-dimensional and a three-dimensional scale across gender and countries, demonstrating the importance of making distinctions between different forms of aggression when measuring collective efficacy to stop aggression. A one-dimensional scale was only supported in the Swedish sample. The results support the use of the Collective Efficacy to Stop Aggression scale with both Italian and Swedish adolescents.     

Enhancing measurement validity in diverse populations: Modern approaches to evaluating differential item functioning

When developing and evaluating psychometric measures, a key concern is to ensure that they accurately capture individual differences on the intended construct across the entire population of interest. Inaccurate assessments of individual differences can occur when responses to some items reflect not only the intended construct but also construct-irrelevant characteristics, like a person's race or sex. Unaccounted for, this item bias can lead to apparent differences on the scores that do not reflect true differences, invalidating comparisons between people with different backgrounds. Accordingly, empirically identifying which items manifest bias through the evaluation of differential item functioning (DIF) has been a longstanding focus of much psychometric research. The majority of this work has focused on evaluating DIF across two (or a few) groups. Modern conceptualizations of identity, however, emphasize its multi-determined and intersectional nature, with some aspects better represented as dimensional than categorical. Fortunately, many model-based approaches to modelling DIF now exist that allow for simultaneous evaluation of multiple background variables, including both continuous and categorical variables, and potential interactions among background variables. This paper provides a comparative, integrative review of these new approaches to modelling DIF and clarifies both the opportunities and challenges associated with their application in psychometric research.     

The biasing effects of selection and attrition on estimating the mean

Organizational and validation researchers often work with data that has been subjected to selection on the predictor and attrition on the criterion. These researchers often use the data observed under these conditions to estimate either the predictor or criterion's restricted population means. We show that the restricted means due to direct or indirect selection are a function of the population means plus the selection ratios. Thus, any difference between selected mean groups reflects the population difference plus the selection ratio difference. When there is also attrition on the criterion, the estimation of group differences becomes even more complicated. The effect of selection and attrition induces measurement bias when estimating the restricted population mean of either the predictor or criterion. A sample mean observed under selection and attrition does not estimate either the population mean or the restricted population mean. We propose several procedures under normality that yield unbiased estimates of the mean. The procedures focus on correcting the effects of selection and attrition. Each procedure was evaluated with a Monte Carlo simulation to ascertain its strengths and weaknesses. Given appropriate sample size and conditions, we show that these procedures yield unbiased estimators of the restricted and unrestricted population means for both predictor and criterion. We also show how our findings have implications for replicating selected group differences.     

人类为什么会好奇?人际好奇的概念、功能及理论解释

人际好奇是个体对他人的信息产生的好奇,其中包括对他人的生活经历、生活习惯和细节,以及想法、感受、动机产生的好奇。人际好奇受到个体性别、年龄、个体状态、人格和文化价值观等因素的影响,而且人际好奇在人际关系的建立与维持、人格判断、文化学习和维护社会规范等方面有积极影响。人际好奇可以用本能论、信息缺口理论、兴趣?剥夺理论和社会比较理论加以解释。目前对人际好奇研究较少,未来需从毕生发展的角度探索人际好奇,研究网络中的人际好奇现象,进一步完善人际好奇的测量方式,加强基础研究和实证研究,考虑文化因素的影响等。     

Using Interactive Theater to Create Socioculturally Relevant Community-Based Intimate Partner Violence Prevention

This article describes the use of interactive theater, audience response assessment, and peer educators to create community-generated approaches for bystander interventions (i.e., actions taken by people who become aware of controlling, abusive and violent behavior of others) to prevent intimate partner violence (IPV) and to foster change in community norms. We include a case example of an ongoing university–community partnership, which mobilizes community members to develop and implement socioculturally relevant IPV prevention programs in multiple Asian communities. We used interactive theater at a community event—a walk to raise awareness about IPV in South Asian communities—and examined how the enacted bystander interventions reflect specific community contexts. We detail the challenges and limitations we have encountered in our attempts to implement this approach in collaboration with our community partners.     

Stress assessment during adolescence: Psychometric properties and measurement invariance of the Student Stress Inventory-Stress Manifestations across gender and age

The main purpose of this study was to analyze the psychometric properties and measurement invariance across gender and age of the Student Stress Inventory-Stress Manifestations (SSI-SM) scores in a large sample of adolescents. The sample was comprised by a total of 1108 students (482 were male), with a mean age of 14.61 years (SD = 1.71). The results indicated that the SSI-SM scores presented adequate psychometric properties from both classical test theory and Item Response Theory (IRT). Confirmatory factorial analysis (CFA), showed that both the bifactor model and a three-factor model (emotional, physiological, and behavioural) were adequate. Multi-group CFA showed that the three-factor model had strong measurement invariance across gender and age. Statistically significant differences in gender were found between latent means as well as raw scores of SSI-SM. Ordinal alpha was .78 for Physiological, .90 for the Emotional, and .79 for the Behavioural subscales. Using IRT, the SSI-SM provides more accuracy information at the medium level of the latent trait. SSI-SM subscales were associated with emotional and behavioural problems. These results provided new sources of validity evidence of the SSI-SM scores in adolescents from general population. The SSI-SM appears to be a useful, brief, and easy to administrate self-report instrument for the screening of stress manifestations at school and educational settings.     

Distinguishing intellectual humility and general humility

Two studies provide evidence for distinguishing intellectual humility (IH) from general humility (GH). Humility involves (a) an Accurate View of Self and (b) the ability to regulate egotism and cultivate an other-oriented stance; IH is a subdomain of humility that involves (a) having an accurate view of one’s intellectual strengths and limitations and (b) the ability to negotiate ideas in a fair and inoffensive manner. First, we present a theoretical framework for distinguishing these constructs. In Study 1, with a sample of undergraduate students (N = 1097), we used confirmatory factor analysis to provide empirical evidence for this distinction. We also found that IH predicted unique variance in openness to experience relative to GH. In Study 2, we examined additional evidence of discriminant validity with another sample of college students (N = 355). IH also predicted unique variance in need for cognition, objectivism, and religious ethnocentrism relative to GH.