The growing interest in Structured Equation Modeling (SEM) techniques and recognition of their importance in IS research suggests the need to compare and contrast different types of SEM techniques so that research designs can be selected appropriately. After assessing the extent to which these techniques are currently being used in IS research, the article presents a running example which analyzes the same dataset via three very different statistical techniques. It then compares two classes of SEM: covariance-based SEM and partial-least-squaresbased SEM. Finally, the article discusses linear regression models and offers guidelines as to when SEM techniques and when regression techniques should be used. The article concludes with heuristics and rule of thumb thresholds to guide practice, and a discussion of the extent to which practice is in accord with these guidelines.

/pdf/structural-equation-modeling-and-regression-guidelines-for-2y96bdeejv.pdf

Structural equation modeling and regression: guidelines for research practice

I would like to thank Jennifer A. Chatman, Margaret Neale, Elizabeth Weldon, Dawn lacobucci, and Oswald Werner for comments on earlier drafts. I would also like to thank Linda Pike for her tremendous help, as well as Robert I. Sutton and three anonymous reviewers. This study examines the structure of 105 work groups and management teams to address the question of whether conflict can be beneficial. Multiple methods were used to examine the effects of conflict on both individualand group-level variables to provide a more refined model of intragroup conflict. Results show that whether conflict was beneficial depended on the type of conflict and the structure of the group in terms of task type, task interdependence, and group norms. Relationship and task conflicts were negatively associated with individuals' satisfaction, liking of other group members, and intent to remain in the group. In groups performing very routine tasks, disagreements about the task were detrimental to group functioning. In contrast, in groups performing nonroutine tasks, disagreements about the tasks did not have a detrimental effect, and in some cases, such disagreements were actually beneficial. Contrary to expectations, norms encouraging open discussion of conflict were not always advantageous. The results suggest that while such norms were associated with an increase in the number and intensity of relationship conflicts, they did not increase members' ability to deal with the conflicts constructively. The model developed here contributes to an integrated perspective on organizational conflict.'

A Multimethod Examination of the Benefits and Detriments of Intragroup Conflict

Customers often react strongly to service failures, so it is critical that an organization's recovery efforts be equally strong and effective. In this article, the authors develop a model of custom...

http://www.ruthnbolton.com/Publications/ServiceFailureandRecovery.pdf?origin=publication_detail

A model of customer satisfaction with service encounters involving failure and recovery

A 4-factor measure of drinking motives based on a conceptual model by Cox & Klinger (1988, 1990) is presented. Using data from a representative household sample of 1,243 Black and White adolescents, confirmatory factor analyses showed that the hypothesized model provided an excellent fit to the data and that the factor pattern was invariant across gender, race, and age. Each drinking motive was related to a distinct pattern of contextual antecedents and drinking-related outcomes, and these relationships did not generally vary across demographic subgroups. Results support both the conceptual validity of Cox and Klinger's model and the utility of this measure for clinical and research purposes across a diverse range of adolescent populations

Motivations for alcohol use among adolescents: development and validation of a four-factor model

Economic choice is the behaviour observed when individuals select one among many available options. There is no intrinsically 'correct' answer: economic choice depends on subjective preferences. This behaviour is traditionally the object of economic analysis and is also of primary interest in psychology. However, the underlying mental processes and neuronal mechanisms are not well understood. Theories of human and animal choice have a cornerstone in the concept of 'value'. Consider, for example, a monkey offered one raisin versus one piece of apple: behavioural evidence suggests that the animal chooses by assigning values to the two options. But where and how values are represented in the brain is unclear. Here we show that, during economic choice, neurons in the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) encode the value of offered and chosen goods. Notably, OFC neurons encode value independently of visuospatial factors and motor responses. If a monkey chooses between A and B, neurons in the OFC encode the value of the two goods independently of whether A is presented on the right and B on the left, or vice versa. This trait distinguishes the OFC from other brain areas in which value modulates activity related to sensory or motor processes. Our results have broad implications for possible psychological models, suggesting that economic choice is essentially choice between goods rather than choice between actions. In this framework, neurons in the OFC seem to be a good candidate network for value assignment underlying economic choice.

W. Wasserman

Papers

Applied linear statistical models: regression, analysis of variance, and experimental designs; third edition

Applied Linear Statistical Models, 2nd Edition.

Applied Linear Regression Models, 2nd edition