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Journal ArticleDOI

Principles Underlying the Use of Multiple Informants' Reports

TL;DR: In this review, the authors advance a framework (Operations Triad Model) outlining general principles for using and interpreting informants' reports and provide supportive evidence for this framework and discuss its implications for hypothesis testing, study design, and quantitative review.
Abstract: Researchers use multiple informants' reports to assess and examine behavior. However, informants' reports commonly disagree. Informants' reports often disagree in their perceived levels of a behavior (“low” versus “elevated” mood), and examining multiple reports in a single study often results in inconsistent findings. Although researchers often espouse taking a multi-informant assessment approach, they frequently address informant discrepancies using techniques that treat discrepancies as measurement error. Yet, recent work indicates that researchers in a variety of fields often may be unable to justify treating informant discrepancies as measurement error. In this review, the authors advance a framework (Operations Triad Model) outlining general principles for using and interpreting informants' reports. Using the framework, researchers can test whether or not they can extract meaningful information about behavior from discrepancies among multiple informants' reports. The authors provide supportive evide...

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It is concluded that health literacy levels did not affect change in treatment processes nor in outcomes of psychosocial treatment, and the consistently higher level of Psychosocial problems among adolescents with inadequate health literacy suggests an unaddressed need in psychossocial care.
Abstract: Although among adolescents with psychosocial problems low health literacy may increase the risk of poor treatment outcomes, the contributing mechanisms within treatment remain unclear. A better understanding of these mechanisms could contribute to improved treatment processes and outcomes. This study aims to examine the relationship between functional health literacy, treatment processes (treatment adherence, learning processes), and treatment outcome (level of psychosocial problems) in adolescents in psychosocial care. We used data from a prospective cohort study among adolescents aged 12–18 (N = 390), collected in four successive measurements: at entry into care, and 3, 12, and 24 months thereafter. We used a mixed effect model to investigate the association between level of functional health literacy (adequate vs. inadequate) and treatment processes (treatment adherence, learning processes) and treatment outcome (level of psychosocial problems). Between adolescents with adequate and inadequate functional health literacy, we found no differences or change over time in adherence or learning processes. The level of psychosocial problems significantly declined over time (β = − 1.70, 95% CI [− 2.72, − 0.69], p = .001) to a similar degree in both groups, though, in all measurements, the level was consistently higher for adolescents with inadequate health literacy. We conclude that health literacy levels did not affect change in treatment processes nor in outcomes of psychosocial treatment. However, the consistently higher level of psychosocial problems among adolescents with inadequate health literacy suggests an unaddressed need in psychosocial care.

2 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Examining clients from different types of research studies not only on levels of clinical severity, impairment, and symptoms, but also on the relations among these domains has important implications for evidence-based practice and interpreting studies seeking to compare clients from research and clinical settings on clinical characteristics.
Abstract: A key element of the evidence-based assessment and treatment movements is ensuring an adequate representation of clients across the different settings in which they receive mental health care (e.g., research and routine or usual care settings). Prior work has focused on comparing clients from research settings to those from usual care settings on various indices of clinical severity, impairment, and symptom levels. In this study, we focused on examining clients from different types of research studies not only on levels of clinical severity, impairment, and symptoms, but also on the relations among these domains. We addressed our objective in a sample of 73 youths meeting primary diagnostic criteria for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD); n = 32 were recruited specifically for a treatment study or received services from a university-based clinic (Youths Receiving Treatment; YRT), and n = 41 were recruited for a non-treatment assessment study (Non-Treatment Research Youths; NTRY). Relative to NTRY, YRT displayed greater GAD clinical severity, and higher generalized anxiety and worry levels. However, we observed no differences between groups in relations among measures of GAD clinical severity, generalized anxiety, and worry. These findings have important implications for evidence-based practice and interpreting studies seeking to compare clients from research and clinical settings on clinical characteristics.

2 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: For instance, this paper evaluated self-reported and partner-reported emotion regulation abilities for each member of 81 adult couples and found that women and men experiencing higher stress, symptoms of psychopathology, couple satisfaction, and intimate partner victimization were potential sources of discordance.
Abstract: Investigations of emotion regulation, which includes both subjective affect and observable behaviors, could benefit from widespread adoption of multi-informant approaches. Currently, informants are infrequently used when studying adults, due to the complexity of interpreting differences among multiple reports. To identify factors that predict disagreement between informants, this study evaluated self-reported and partner-reported emotion regulation abilities for each member of 81 adult couples. Ratings of each partner’s perceived stress, symptoms of psychopathology, couple satisfaction, and intimate partner victimization were collected as potential sources of discordance. Intrapersonal characteristics appeared to contribute most to diverging reports: women and men experiencing higher stress (and marginally their psychopathology) reported worse emotion regulation abilities in comparison to their partners’ ratings of their abilities, underscoring the value of having multiple reports. Additionally, women’s reports about their partners corresponded with their partners’ self-reports but men’s reports about their partners did not. Men with higher couple satisfaction reported better emotion regulation abilities compared to their partner’s reports. More work is needed to understand multi-informant differences in adult reports of psychological functioning.

2 citations

Posted ContentDOI
11 Aug 2021-medRxiv
TL;DR: In this paper, the effect of internalizing and externalizing behaviors as well as MRI-related anxiety on image quality in children was investigated, showing that children with more internalizing behaviors were less likely to participate in the actual MRI scanning procedure.
Abstract: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) procedures often evoke anxiety in children. Further, anxious children may be less likely to participate in MRI research, leading to a possible selection bias, and may be more likely to move during image acquisition, resulting in lower image quality and possible information bias. Therefore, state anxiety is problematic for functional and structural MRI studies. Children with behavioral problems, such as internalizing and externalizing behaviors, may be more likely to experience state anxiety prior to and during MRI scanning. Therefore, our first aim was to investigate the relationship between internalizing/externalizing behavior and children’s MRI-related state anxiety. Our second aim was to investigate the relationship between internalizing and externalizing behavior and MRI research participation. Our final aim was to investigate the effect of internalizing and externalizing behavior as well as MRI-related anxiety on image quality in children. We included 1,241 six- to ten-year-old children who underwent a mock MRI. Afterwards, if not too anxious, these children were scanned using a 3-Tesla GE Discovery MRI system (n = 1,070). Internalizing and externalizing behaviors were assessed with the Child Behavior Checklist. State anxiety was assessed with a visual analogue scale. Internalizing behaviors were positively associated with child state anxiety, as reported by child, parent, and researcher. For state anxiety reported by the parent and researcher, this relationship was independent of externalizing behaviors. Externalizing behaviors were related to state anxiety reported by the researcher, but this difference was not independent of internalizing behaviors, pointing towards a relationship via the shared variance with internalizing behaviors. Further, children with more internalizing and externalizing behaviors were less likely to participate in the actual MRI scanning procedure. Lastly, internalizing and externalizing behaviors, as well as MRI-related state anxiety were associated with worse image quality. These results underscore the potential for biases and methodological issues caused by MRI-related state anxiety in children.

2 citations

DOI
01 Jan 2016
TL;DR: Thompson et al. as mentioned in this paper examined the reciprocal longitudinal relations between physical aggression and traumatic stress among a predominantly African American sample of middle school students and concluded that interventions may need to incorporate skills that are aligned with trauma-informed care practices in order to reduce traumatic stress and physical aggression among adolescents.
Abstract: RECIPROCAL RELATIONS BETWEEN TRAUMATIC STRESS AND PHYSICAL AGGRESSION DURING MIDDLE SCHOOL By Erin L. Thompson, M.P.P. A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science at Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Commonwealth University, 2016 Major Director: Albert D. Farrell, Ph. D., Commonwealth Professor, Department of Psychology There is convincing evidence that demonstrates traumatic stress and aggressive behavior are highly related among adolescents. The evidence is less clear regarding the direction of this relation. The purpose of this study was to examine the reciprocal longitudinal relations between physical aggression and traumatic stress among a predominantly African American sample of middle school students. Support was found for traumatic stress predicting increased levels of physical aggression across the winter to the spring of the sixth grade for boys and across all waves from the fall of the seventh grade to the fall of the eighth grade for both boys and girls. Conversely, physical aggression during the winter of the sixth grade predicted a decrease in traumatic stress in the spring of the sixth grade for both boys and girls. These findings suggest that interventions may need to incorporate skills that are aligned with trauma-informed care practices in order to reduce traumatic stress and physical aggression among adolescents.

2 citations

References
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Reference EntryDOI
11 Jun 2013

113,134 citations

Book
01 Jan 1983
TL;DR: In this Section: 1. Multivariate Statistics: Why? and 2. A Guide to Statistical Techniques: Using the Book Research Questions and Associated Techniques.
Abstract: In this Section: 1. Brief Table of Contents 2. Full Table of Contents 1. BRIEF TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter 2 A Guide to Statistical Techniques: Using the Book Chapter 3 Review of Univariate and Bivariate Statistics Chapter 4 Cleaning Up Your Act: Screening Data Prior to Analysis Chapter 5 Multiple Regression Chapter 6 Analysis of Covariance Chapter 7 Multivariate Analysis of Variance and Covariance Chapter 8 Profile Analysis: The Multivariate Approach to Repeated Measures Chapter 9 Discriminant Analysis Chapter 10 Logistic Regression Chapter 11 Survival/Failure Analysis Chapter 12 Canonical Correlation Chapter 13 Principal Components and Factor Analysis Chapter 14 Structural Equation Modeling Chapter 15 Multilevel Linear Modeling Chapter 16 Multiway Frequency Analysis 2. FULL TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1: Introduction Multivariate Statistics: Why? Some Useful Definitions Linear Combinations of Variables Number and Nature of Variables to Include Statistical Power Data Appropriate for Multivariate Statistics Organization of the Book Chapter 2: A Guide to Statistical Techniques: Using the Book Research Questions and Associated Techniques Some Further Comparisons A Decision Tree Technique Chapters Preliminary Check of the Data Chapter 3: Review of Univariate and Bivariate Statistics Hypothesis Testing Analysis of Variance Parameter Estimation Effect Size Bivariate Statistics: Correlation and Regression. Chi-Square Analysis Chapter 4: Cleaning Up Your Act: Screening Data Prior to Analysis Important Issues in Data Screening Complete Examples of Data Screening Chapter 5: Multiple Regression General Purpose and Description Kinds of Research Questions Limitations to Regression Analyses Fundamental Equations for Multiple Regression Major Types of Multiple Regression Some Important Issues. Complete Examples of Regression Analysis Comparison of Programs Chapter 6: Analysis of Covariance General Purpose and Description Kinds of Research Questions Limitations to Analysis of Covariance Fundamental Equations for Analysis of Covariance Some Important Issues Complete Example of Analysis of Covariance Comparison of Programs Chapter 7: Multivariate Analysis of Variance and Covariance General Purpose and Description Kinds of Research Questions Limitations to Multivariate Analysis of Variance and Covariance Fundamental Equations for Multivariate Analysis of Variance and Covariance Some Important Issues Complete Examples of Multivariate Analysis of Variance and Covariance Comparison of Programs Chapter 8: Profile Analysis: The Multivariate Approach to Repeated Measures General Purpose and Description Kinds of Research Questions Limitations to Profile Analysis Fundamental Equations for Profile Analysis Some Important Issues Complete Examples of Profile Analysis Comparison of Programs Chapter 9: Discriminant Analysis General Purpose and Description Kinds of Research Questions Limitations to Discriminant Analysis Fundamental Equations for Discriminant Analysis Types of Discriminant Analysis Some Important Issues Comparison of Programs Chapter 10: Logistic Regression General Purpose and Description Kinds of Research Questions Limitations to Logistic Regression Analysis Fundamental Equations for Logistic Regression Types of Logistic Regression Some Important Issues Complete Examples of Logistic Regression Comparison of Programs Chapter 11: Survival/Failure Analysis General Purpose and Description Kinds of Research Questions Limitations to Survival Analysis Fundamental Equations for Survival Analysis Types of Survival Analysis Some Important Issues Complete Example of Survival Analysis Comparison of Programs Chapter 12: Canonical Correlation General Purpose and Description Kinds of Research Questions Limitations Fundamental Equations for Canonical Correlation Some Important Issues Complete Example of Canonical Correlation Comparison of Programs Chapter 13: Principal Components and Factor Analysis General Purpose and Description Kinds of Research Questions Limitations Fundamental Equations for Factor Analysis Major Types of Factor Analysis Some Important Issues Complete Example of FA Comparison of Programs Chapter 14: Structural Equation Modeling General Purpose and Description Kinds of Research Questions Limitations to Structural Equation Modeling Fundamental Equations for Structural Equations Modeling Some Important Issues Complete Examples of Structural Equation Modeling Analysis. Comparison of Programs Chapter 15: Multilevel Linear Modeling General Purpose and Description Kinds of Research Questions Limitations to Multilevel Linear Modeling Fundamental Equations Types of MLM Some Important Issues Complete Example of MLM Comparison of Programs Chapter 16: Multiway Frequency Analysis General Purpose and Description Kinds of Research Questions Limitations to Multiway Frequency Analysis Fundamental Equations for Multiway Frequency Analysis Some Important Issues Complete Example of Multiway Frequency Analysis Comparison of Programs

53,113 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This transmutability of the validation matrix argues for the comparisons within the heteromethod block as the most generally relevant validation data, and illustrates the potential interchangeability of trait and method components.
Abstract: Content Memory (Learning Ability) As Comprehension 82 Vocabulary Cs .30 ( ) .23 .31 ( ) .31 .31 .35 ( ) .29 .48 .35 .38 ( ) .30 .40 .47 .58 .48 ( ) As judged against these latter values, comprehension (.48) and vocabulary (.47), but not memory (.31), show some specific validity. This transmutability of the validation matrix argues for the comparisons within the heteromethod block as the most generally relevant validation data, and illustrates the potential interchangeability of trait and method components. Some of the correlations in Chi's (1937) prodigious study of halo effect in ratings are appropriate to a multitrait-multimethod matrix in which each rater might be regarded as representing a different method. While the published report does not make these available in detail because it employs averaged values, it is apparent from a comparison of his Tables IV and VIII that the ratings generally failed to meet the requirement that ratings of the same trait by different raters should correlate higher than ratings of different traits by the same rater. Validity is shown to the extent that of the correlations in the heteromethod block, those in the validity diagonal are higher than the average heteromethod-heterotrait values. A conspicuously unsuccessful multitrait-multimethod matrix is provided by Campbell (1953, 1956) for rating of the leadership behavior of officers by themselves and by their subordinates. Only one of 11 variables (Recognition Behavior) met the requirement of providing a validity diagonal value higher than any of the heterotrait-heteromethod values, that validity being .29. For none of the variables were the validities higher than heterotrait-monomethod values. A study of attitudes toward authority and nonauthority figures by Burwen and Campbell (1957) contains a complex multitrait-multimethod matrix, one symmetrical excerpt from which is shown in Table 6. Method variance was strong for most of the procedures in this study. Where validity was found, it was primarily at the level of validity diagonal values higher than heterotrait-heteromethod values. As illustrated in Table 6, attitude toward father showed this kind of validity, as did attitude toward peers to a lesser degree. Attitude toward boss showed no validity. There was no evidence of a generalized attitude toward authority which would include father and boss, although such values as the VALIDATION BY THE MULTITRAIT-MULTIMETHOD MATRIX

15,795 citations

Book
B. F. Skinner1
01 Jan 1953
TL;DR: The psychology classic "Walden Two" as mentioned in this paper is a detailed study of scientific theories of human nature and the possible ways in which human behavior can be predicted and controlled from one of the most influential behaviorists of the twentieth century.
Abstract: The psychology classic-a detailed study of scientific theories of human nature and the possible ways in which human behavior can be predicted and controlled-from one of the most influential behaviorists of the twentieth century and the author of Walden Two. "This is an important book, exceptionally well written, and logically consistent with the basic premise of the unitary nature of science. Many students of society and culture would take violent issue with most of the things that Skinner has to say, but even those who disagree most will find this a stimulating book." -Samuel M. Strong, The American Journal of Sociology "This is a remarkable book-remarkable in that it presents a strong, consistent, and all but exhaustive case for a natural science of human behavior...It ought to be...valuable for those whose preferences lie with, as well as those whose preferences stand against, a behavioristic approach to human activity." -Harry Prosch, Ethics

8,325 citations


"Principles Underlying the Use of Mu..." refers background in this paper

  • ...…which a patient lives may vary as a function of the contingencies (e.g., corporal punishment and praise) that reinforce expressions of her behavior (e.g., Skinner 1953), and as mentioned previously, multiple informants may vary in where they observe a patient’s behavior (e.g., De Los Reyes 2011)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Etude de la coherence entre differentes sources (269 echantillons utilisees dans 119 etudes) concernant les evaluations des problemes affectifs et comportementaux d'enfants et d'adolescents âges de 1 1/2 a 19 ans.
Abstract: Etude de la coherence entre differentes sources (269 echantillons utilisees dans 119 etudes) concernant les evaluations des problemes affectifs et comportementaux d'enfants et d'adolescents âges de 1 1/2 a 19 ans

5,254 citations


"Principles Underlying the Use of Mu..." refers background in this paper

  • ...Third, as mentioned previously, low multi-informant correspondence is the norm rather than the exception in assessments of child, adolescent, and adult psychopathology (Achenbach et al. 1987, 2005)....

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  • ...Along these lines, perhaps the investigative team would draw from theory suggesting that parents and teachers provide discrepant reports because they observe children in different contexts or settings (parents at home versus teachers at school; Achenbach et al. 1987, Kraemer et al. 2003)....

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  • ...Achenbach et al. (1987) lucidly reflected this interpretation, in a meta-analysis of correspondence between informants’ reports of child mental health that was published nearly a century after Edgeworth’s (1888) article....

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  • ...However, although multiple informants’ reports typically correspond no higher than low-to-moderate in magnitude (e.g., r’s ranging from 0.20 to 0.40; see Achenbach et al. 1987, 2005), they nonetheless often correspond with each other at statistically significant magnitudes....

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  • ...(e.g., Achenbach et al. 1987, 2005)....

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Trending Questions (1)
What are the different ways to use multiple informants in family studies?

The paper proposes a framework called the Operations Triad Model (OTM) to guide researchers in using and interpreting multiple informants' reports in family studies.