Curve Modeling Approach Research Articles

INCREMENTAL VALIDITY OF OPTIMISM AND PURPOSE FOR PREDICTING OLDER ADULTS’ DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS

After age 60, depressive symptoms tend to increase slowly over time on average across the population. However, individual trajectories vary, with some increasing more steeply, and others remaining stable. A broad array of psychological constructs have been demonstrated to predict depressive symptoms, including neuroticism, extraversion, optimism, and sense of purpose in life. It is important for psychologists to understand which among these factors are the strongest and most robust predictors. A substantial body of research demonstrates that Big Five personality traits are strongly associated with depressive symptoms (e.g., Hakulinen et al., 2015). Optimism and purpose are also associated with well-being (Carver et al., 2009; Pinquart, 2002), but it is not clear whether such associations could be accounted for by Big Five traits, which are also correlated with optimism and purpose. Using data from the Health and Retirement Study (N = 14,021), we tested the incremental validity of optimism and purpose for predicting older adults’ depressive symptoms, controlling for Big Five traits and demographics. A latent growth curve modeling approach allowed us to examine associations with trajectories of depressive symptoms over six waves (approximately 10 years). Results demonstrated that both optimism and purpose are significantly associated with baseline levels of depressive symptoms, over and above the Big Five. However, only Big Five traits were associated with linear and quadratic slope in depressive symptom trajectories. These findings suggest that optimism and purpose are not redundant with Big Five traits for predicting depressive symptoms, and may be valuable targets for intervention efforts.

Adolescents’ online social network use and life satisfaction: A latent growth curve modeling approach

The global popularity of online social networks (OSN) prompted concerns about adverse effects on adolescents' psychological well-being. To further the understanding of the relation between adolescents' use of OSN and life satisfaction, we used data from 701 female and 456 male Croatian high-school students collected over a period of 23 months. Multivariate conditional and unconditional dual-domain latent growth curve modeling was used to explore the following research questions: How are changes in OSN use and life satisfaction interrelated; is the association gender-specific; and whether parental engagement plays a role in the relation? The only significant association between the use of OSN and life satisfaction was observed at baseline and only in female adolescents, with higher OSN use corresponding to lower life satisfaction. Among male adolescents, the target relation at baseline depended on parental engagement. Higher OSN use was related to higher life satisfaction in male participants who reported lower parental engagement, but not their peers characterized by higher parental engagement. The gender differences likely reflect gendered motivation for and vulnerability to OSN use. Insights from this longitudinal study contribute to the body of research on psychosocial outcomes associated with adolescents’ use of OSN and can inform educational and media experts.

Executive function facilitates learning from math instruction in kindergarten: Evidence from the ECLS-K

Extensive evidence has suggested mathematical skill in early childhood is a robust predictor of children's later academic skills and eventual labor market outcomes; however, there is substantial heterogeneity in the degree to which different students learn from the same instructional contexts. Using data from N = 12,082 children enrolled in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort, this paper employs a latent piecewise growth curve modeling approach to investigate the role of classroom math instruction and executive function and approaches to learning in the development of mathematical skills in kindergarten, first, and second grade. Findings suggest that overall instructional frequency relates to math development in kindergarten through second, and that this is driven by exposure to advanced content in kindergarten. Further, executive function moderates children's learning in kindergarten, such that children with higher levels of executive function benefit more from instruction than do those with lower levels.

Effects of Ego-Depletion and State Anxiety on Performance Changes in Dart-Throwing Tasks: A Latent Curve Model Approach Reporting Trial Data for Human Participants.

This study examined the effects ego depletion (ED) and state anxiety (SA)have on performance changes in dart-throwing, a perceptual-motor task, using a Latent Curve Model (LCM). Twenty-two men, who had never played darts before, were recruited and randomly assigned to two counterbalanced groups: Group A was exposed first to ED and then to non-ED (NED), and Group B was exposed first to NED and then to ED. We found that the number of trials had a non-linear effect on darts performance, which improved as the number of trials increased before declining again; that is, mean radial error decreased first and then increased. Therefore, motor performance was sustained in the form of a quadratic curve as the number of task executions increased. In general, the higher the degree of ED and SA, the greater the negative effect on performance. However, this phenomenon was observed only in the early-phase trials, and the interacting influence of ED and SA appeared in the late-phase trials. Thus, this study demonstrated that ED and SA have direct effects on performance curves in early-phase trials only, and that their interacting influence appears in late-phase trials.

Latent Growth Models with Floors, Ceilings, and Random Knots

In longitudinal/developmental studies, individual growth trajectories are sometimes bounded by a floor at the beginning of the observation period and/or a ceiling toward the end of the observation period (or vice versa), resulting in inherently nonlinear growth patterns. If the trajectories between the floor and ceiling are approximately linear, such longitudinal growth patterns can be described with a linear piecewise (spline) model in which segments join at knots. In these scenarios, it may be of specific interest for researchers to examine the timing when transition occurs, and in some occasions also to examine the levels of the floors and/or ceilings if they are not known and fixed. In the current study, we propose a reparameterized piecewise latent growth curve model so that a direct estimation of the random knots (and, if needed, a direct estimation of random floors and ceilings) is possible. We derive the model reparameterization using a 4-step structured latent curve modeling approach. We provide two illustrative examples to demonstrate how the proposed reparameterized models can be fitted to longitudinal growth data using the popular SEM software Mplus and we supply the full coding for applied researchers’ reference.

Exploring general high school characteristics and education policy variables that affect student’s academic achievement changes in mathematics: A latent growth curve modeling approach

Exploring general high school characteristics and education policy variables that affect student’s academic achievement changes in mathematics: A latent growth curve modeling approach

Occupational Gradients in Work-Related Insecurity and Health: Interrogating the Links.

Traditional work-related securities that constitute the career-job model of employment have been in steep decline for several decades, affecting workers across industries and occupations. Still, insecure employment remains unequally distributed across the working population according to the major axes of social stratification, namely age, gender, race, and socioeconomic class. This study investigates patterns of exposure to work-related insecurity across the occupational hierarchy and whether these contribute to occupational gradients in health outcomes. Drawing on data from a national panel survey of the Canadian workforce, a multilevel growth curve modeling approach is used to examine the relationship between work-insecurity exposures and workers' self-rated health trajectories over 5 years. Findings show that work-related insecurity is associated with declines in self-rated health, although the type of insecurity as well as the magnitude, direction, and duration of the effect varies by occupational status-position. The application of pseudo-R2 tests confirmed this study's central hypothesis that gradients in health outcomes across occupational hierarchies are due, in part, to differences in exposure to work-related insecurity. Going forward, the development of effective health promotion interventions that can modify work-related health gradients, must work toward mitigating the risk of exposure to adverse work circumstances that is systemic to occupational hierarchies.

Assessing the learning achievement of students from different college entrance channels: a linear growth curve modelling approach

This study aims to investigate the academic achievement of students who were admitted to a college from three different college entrance channels in Taiwan. The three channels are personal application, admission by examination and placement, and the Star Program. Longitudinal data composed of 1053 students during eight semesters over 4 years from one university were examined. Beyond basic descriptive statistics, linear growth curve modelling was utilized to capture the dynamic extent of the exploratory variables for predicting students’ learning performance. The descriptive statistical results showed that, prior to college, students’ learning performance followed the order in which the college entrance channels were listed. During their time at college, however, the pattern of ranking of the students’ performance was totally reversed. The results from the growth curve modelling indicated that prior knowledge, that is, students’ standardized test scores, had a positive influence on initial grades but a negative impact on the slope of students’ learning achievement. Different patterns of learning performance of students from the three channels were observed. Implications and suggestions for evaluating the effectiveness of college entrance channels and assessing students’ learning performance from a longitudinal perspective are discussed.

Developmental patterns of psychopathic personality traits and the influence of social factors among a sample of serious juvenile offenders

Little is known about the development of psychopathic traits and the factors impacting its trajectory. Using a Latent Growth Curve Modeling (LCGM) approach with Multiple-Group Multiple-Cohort (MGMC) method to account for the cohort sequential design of the data, trajectories of the Grandiose-Manipulative (GM), the Callous-Unemotional (CU), and the Impulsive-Irresponsible (II) dimensions as measured by the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory (YPI; Andershed et al., 2002) were examined from ages 14.5–25 among a sample of serious juvenile offenders (n = 1354). It was also examined if several social risk factors (i.e., demographic characteristics, delinquent peer association, neighborhood disorder, parenting, parental criminality, and violence exposure) accounted for baseline levels (intercept) and change (slope) of each of the dimensions of psychopathic traits. While all three dimensions of the YPI declined from adolescence to young adulthood, the GM and II dimensions leveled-off sooner than the CU dimension. Delinquent peer association and parental warmth were most consistently associated with initial levels of all three dimensions; however, witnessing violence was associated with change in the GM dimension only. Delinquent peer association and parental warmth were associated with change in the CU dimension. None of the factors predicted change in the II dimension.

A Latent Curve Model Approach To Studying L2 N‐Gram Development

AbstractCurrent quantitative methods in second language (L2) acquisition have proven useful in examining how phraseological unit production changes over time. However, these methods are limited in that they do not allow for the analysis of individual differences in those changes. This study demonstrates the potential for Latent Curve Modeling, a type of Structural Equation Modeling, to address questions about productive phraseological knowledge development. It examines growth in multiple indices of bigram and trigram use (frequency, association strength, proportion) in the spoken output of L2 speakers over the course of a 4‐month study. Results for unconditional latent curve models indicate that spoken bigram and trigram proportions increased for the entire group over the study period. Conditional latent curve models showed that growth in bigram frequency and bigram proportion was predicted by proficiency, with less proficient writers experiencing greater growth. These models also demonstrated that conversation dyad predicted growth in spoken bigram frequency in that L2 speakers with L2 conversation partners, as compared to first language (L1) partners, produced more high‐frequency bigrams over time. These results have implications for research on L2 productive phraseological knowledge development specifically and longitudinal L2 research in general.

Varieties of Religious and Pornographic Experience: Latent Growth in Adolescents’ Religiosity and Pornography Use

ABSTRACTThe relationship between adolescent religiosity and pornography use has been longitudinally tested only in the United States. Given the social relevance of hypothesized mechanisms underlying the association, this study offers a three-wave longitudinal assessment of parallel latent growth in the two constructs carried out in a Southern European country. Using responses of 1,041 Croatian adolescents from the capital city (Mage = 16.14 years, SD = .45; 64.6% of female students) and latent growth curve modeling approach, we explored links between individual trajectories of change in religiosity and pornography use over a period of 24 months. In the observed period, religiosity decreased and pornography use increased among both male and female adolescents, but their dynamics were independent of each other—pointing to other (unmeasured) processes responsible for both adolescents’ sexualization and secularization. Important to note, the findings also pointed to an important role of age at first exposure to pornography for its frequency of use in middle to late adolescence.

Covariate matching methods for testing and quantifying wind turbine upgrades

In the wind industry, engineers perform retrofitting upgrades on in-service wind turbines for the purpose of improving power production capabilities. Considering how costly an upgrade can be, people often wonder about the upgrade effect: whether it indeed improves turbine performances, and if so, how much. One cannot simply compare power outputs for the purpose of assessing a turbine’s improvement, as wind power generation is affected by an array of environmental covariates, including wind speed, wind direction, temperature, pressure as well as other atmosphere dynamics. For a fair comparison to discern the upgrade effect, it is critical to have these environmental effects controlled for while comparing power output differences. Most existing approaches rely on establishing a power curve model and let the model account for the environmental effects. In this paper, we propose a different approach, which is to devise a covariate matching method to ensure the environmental covariates to have comparable distribution profiles before and after an action of upgrade. Once the covariates are matched, paired $t$-tests can be applied to the power outputs for testing the significance of the upgrade effect. The relative increase in power production can also be quantified. The proposed approach is simple to use and relies on fewer assumptions than the power curve modeling approach.

Longitudinal associations between exercise identity and exercise motivation: A multilevel growth curve model approach.

Past work linking exercise identity and exercise motivation has been cross-sectional. This is the first study to model the relations between different types of exercise identity and exercise motivation longitudinally. Understanding the dynamic associations between these sets of variables has implications for theory development and applied research. This was a longitudinal survey study. Participants were 180 exercisers (79 men, 101 women) from Greece, who were recruited from fitness centers and were asked to complete questionnaires assessing exercise identity (exercise beliefs and role-identity) and exercise motivation (intrinsic, identified, introjected, external motivation, and amotivation) three times within a 6month period. Multilevel growth curve modeling examined the role of motivational regulations as within- and between-level predictors of exercise identity, and a model in which exercise identity predicted exercise motivation at the within- and between-person levels. Results showed that within-person changes in intrinsic motivation, introjected, and identified regulations were positively and reciprocally related to within-person changes in exercise beliefs; intrinsic motivation was also a positive predictor of within-person changes in role-identity but not vice versa. Between-person differences in the means of predictor variables were predictive of initial levels and average rates of change in the outcome variables. The findings show support to the proposition that a strong exercise identity (particularly exercise beliefs) can foster motivation for behaviors that reinforce this identity. We also demonstrate that such relations can be reciprocal overtime and can depend on the type of motivation in question as well as between-person differences in absolute levels of these variables.

Growth in Reading Comprehension and Mathematics Achievement in Primary School: A Bivariate Transition Multilevel Growth Curve Model Approach

The measurement and explanation of school effects on both students’ reading comprehension and mathematics achievement in primary school children has seldom been studied. Some studies have focused on mathematics achievement as a predictor of reading comprehension or reading as a predictor of mathematics performance. These studies make the key assumption of deciding in advance which of the outcomes is dependent on the other. A few multivariate studies have nonetheless been done to investigate the possibility of a relationship between overall reading ability and mathematics, by looking at the common characteristics responsible for high performance in mathematics and reading (e.g. De Maeyer et al.,) The current study goes further, because it investigates growth in reading comprehension and mathematics without any assumption on their functional dependence. The call for the use of multivariate methods to investigate the strength of a relationship between outcomes has been an invaluable problem in educational research as a whole.

Longitudinal associations between body mass index, physical activity, and healthy dietary behaviors in adults: A parallel latent growth curve modeling approach.

BackgroundPhysical activity (PA) and healthy dietary behaviors (HDB) are two well-documented lifestyle factors influencing body mass index (BMI). This study examined 7-year longitudinal associations between changes in PA, HDB, and BMI among adults using a parallel latent growth curve modeling (LGCM).MethodsWe used prospective cohort data collected by a private company (SimplyWell LLC, Omaha, NE, USA) implementing a workplace health screening program. Data from a total of 2,579 adults who provided valid BMI, PA, and HDB information for at least 5 out of 7 follow-up years from the time they entered the program were analyzed. PA and HDB were subjectively measured during an annual online health survey. Height and weight measured during an annual onsite health screening were used to calculate BMI (kg·m2). The parallel LGCMs stratified by gender and baseline weight status (normal: BMI<25, overweight BMI 25–29.9, and obese: BMI>30) were fitted to examine the longitudinal associations of changes in PA and HDB with change in BMI over years.ResultsOn average, BMI gradually increased over years, at rates ranging from 0.06 to 0.20 kg·m2·year, with larger increases observed among those of normal baseline weight status across genders. The increases in PA and HDB were independently associated with a smaller increase in BMI for obese males (b = -1.70 and -1.98, respectively), and overweight females (b = -1.85 and -2.46, respectively) and obese females (b = -2.78 and -3.08, respectively). However, no significant associations of baseline PA and HDB with changes in BMI were observed.ConclusionsOur study suggests that gradual increases in PA and HDB are independently associated with smaller increases in BMI in overweight and obese adults, but not in normal weight individuals. Further study is warranted to address factors that check increases in BMI in normal weight adults.

A longitudinal comparison of customer satisfaction and customer-company identification in a service context

Purpose Customer satisfaction (CS) and customer-company identification (CCI) are two important relational constructs and play a complementary role in the service-profit chain. Drawing from the theory of relationship dynamics, the purpose of this paper is to define CS velocity and CCI velocity as the rate and direction of change in CS and CCI, respectively. A comparison of the relative effects of CCI velocity and CS velocity on customer loyalty is done through a latent growth curve modeling approach. Design/methodology/approach A conceptual model is developed and empirically tested based on four waves of a longitudinal survey of 213 restaurant customers. Findings The results show that both CCI velocity and CS velocity have positive effects on customer loyalty. More importantly, the effects of CCI velocity on customer loyalty over time are stronger than those of CS velocity. The moderation analysis further shows that the higher the frequency of visits to the service firm, the stronger the effects of relationship velocity on customer loyalty. Practical implications The results provide new insights for service marketing managers by suggesting that, to benefit the long-term effectiveness of relationship investments, service firms should shift the priority from increasing CS to engendering CCI. Originality/value This paper contributes to the theory of relationship dynamics by conceptualizing new constructs of CS velocity and CCI velocity and by empirically comparing their relative effects on customer loyalty over time.

The Effectiveness of the Life Skills Program IPSY for the Prevention of Adolescent Tobacco Use

In this study, the effectiveness of a life skills program to impede tobacco use in early adolescence was scrutinized. The focus was on the mediating role of yielding to peer pressure. The universal school-based life skills program IPSY ( Information + Psychosocial Competence = Protection) against adolescent substance use was implemented over 3 years. Over the same time period, it was evaluated based on a longitudinal quasi-experimental design with an intervention and comparison group (4 measurement points; N = 1,657 German students, age 10 at T1). By applying a growth curve modeling approach, we found that participation in IPSY compared with non-participation predicted a slower increase in tobacco use over time, suggesting a significant intervention effect. Moreover, a parallel growth curve model revealed that less yielding to peer pressure induced by IPSY mediated the program effects on tobacco use over time.

Investigating a Longitudinal Trajectory of Child Obesity and Its Association with Child Maltreatment in South Korea

This study investigated the association between child maltreatment and body mass index (BMI) using data from four waves (wave 2 in 2011 through 5 in 2014) of the Korean Children &amp; Youth Panel Survey collected by the South Korean National Youth Policy Institute. We employed a latent growth curve modeling approach to estimate an unobserved latent trajectory and to test the longitudinal effects of child abuse and neglect on BMI. Our results indicate that child abuse is significantly associated with BMI and children who report higher levels of abuse tend to have higher rates of increase in their BMI. This study addresses a gap in the literature by demonstrating that a parent's maltreatment of their child has a long‐term effect on the rate of change in their BMI over time.

Trajectories of Change in Obesity among Tehranian Families: Multilevel Latent Growth Curve Modeling.

Objectives. To evaluate the trajectories of change in obesity within and between Tehranian families, who participated in the Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study (TLGS). Methods. This study is a family-based longitudinal design, in four waves. A total of 14761 individuals, within 3980 families, were selected. Three anthropometric measurements, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and a body shape index (ABSI), were recorded. Multilevel latent growth curve modeling (MLGCM) approach was used for evaluating the change trajectories in obesity within and between the families. Results. The mean age of the subjects in the present study was 33.28 ± 19.01 (range 3–89 years) and 50.1% were male. Obesity was significantly increased (P < 0.001). Individuals with more fat become obese slower, whereas families with more fat become obese faster (P < 0.001). The initial value and growth rate of WC and ABSI were greater in men than in women, while this result is contrary to BMI (P < 0.001). Conclusions. Our findings demonstrated that there is an alarming increase in the obesity trend in Tehranian families. The important role of the family in the prevention of obesity is highlighted, underlining the need for public health programs, as family centered educations to lifestyle modification, which can address this emerging crisis.

Evaluating the effectiveness of a peer-led education intervention to improve the patient safety attitudes of junior pharmacy students: a cross-sectional study using a latent growth curve modelling approach

ObjectiveDespite the recognition that educating healthcare students in patient safety is essential, changing already full curricula can be challenging. Furthermore, institutions may lack the capacity and capability to deliver patient...