Application Of Empirical Research Research Articles

Overall Model Fit Does Not Imply Linearity in Longitudinal Structural Equation Models: Examining Linear Change Over Time Using Latent Variable Modeling

This article is concerned with the assumption of linear temporal development that is often advanced in structural equation modeling-based longitudinal research. The linearity hypothesis is implemented in particular in the popular intercept-and-slope model as well as in more general models containing it as a component, such as longitudinal structural models with covariates, or models for the study of predictors and correlates of change. In empirical research applications, currently behavioral and social scientists typically evaluate only overall goodness of fit for a considered model. However, this omnibus fit assessment may miss violations of the underlying linearity assumption. To respond to this limitation, the present article discusses a testing procedure for examining the hypothesis of linear growth or decline separately from the widely used overall fit evaluation process. The method is readily utilized with popular latent variable modeling software and is illustrated using a numerical example.

Development of a women\u2019s empowerment index for Tanzania from the demographic and health surveys of 2004\u201305, 2010, and 2015\u201316

BackgroundWomen’s empowerment is a multidimensional construct which varies by context. These variations make it challenging to have a concrete definition that can be measured quantitatively. Having a standard composite measure of empowerment at the individual and country level would help to assess how countries are progressing in efforts to achieve gender equality (SDG 5), enable standardization across and within settings and guide the formulation of policies and interventions. The aim of this study was to develop a women’s empowerment index for Tanzania and to assess its evolution across three demographic and health surveys from 2004 to 2016.ResultsWomen’s empowerment in Tanzania was categorized into six distinct domains namely; attitudes towards violence, decision making, social independence, age at critical life events, access to healthcare, and property ownership. The internal reliability of this six-domain model was shown to be acceptable by a Cronbach’s α value of 0.658. The fit statistics of the root mean squared error of approximation (0.05), the comparative fit index (0.93), and the standardized root mean squared residual (0.04) indicated good internal validity. The structure of women’s empowerment was observed to have remained relatively constant across three Tanzanian demographic and health surveys.ConclusionsThe use of factor analysis in this research has shown that women’s empowerment in Tanzania is a six-domain construct that has remained relatively constant over the past ten years. This could be a stepping stone to reducing ambiguity in conceptualizing and operationalizing empowerment and expanding its applications in empirical research to study different women related outcomes in Tanzania.

From the South to the North: The circulation of Latin American dependency theories in the Federal Republic of Germany

Sociological research into the transregional North–South circulation of knowledge in the social sciences and humanities has tended to have a unidirectional bias to date. The standard assumption is that as a result of globalization, theories and methods are spread from the global North to the global South. Based on this premise, many of the studies of circulation focus on the transfer of knowledge in terms of ideas, traditions, authors and concepts from the North to the South. Thus far, little attention has been paid to the transregional circulation of theoretical approaches from the South to the North and their impact on the transformation of the European social sciences and humanities. Analysing the circulation of the Latin American dependency theories in the Federal Republic of Germany, this article addresses precisely this gap. The focus is on processes of institutional consolidation of area studies, North–South mobility, the translation-process into German, application in empirical research, modification and rejection. Focusing on this little-explored orientation regarding the circulation of knowledge, this article is in keeping with the current attempt to analyse transregional entanglements within European social sciences.

The impacts of government ideology on innovation: What are the main implications?

This study investigates the relationship between government ideology and technical innovativeness of the whole country by using multinational panel data covering 110 countries from 1995 to 2015 and by employing comprehensive indicators for technical innovation, i.e. trademark and patent application in empirical research. We utilize the panel generalized method of moment (GMM) technique to introduce dynamic variables in order to avoid the bias caused by potential endogeneity. Next, we generate three cross items to examine whether the effect of government ideology on technical innovation differs under different circumstances. We then change the measurement of government ideology to assure the reliability of our empirical results, further investigate whether the changes of political ideology influence technical innovation, and carry out a robustness test by dividing the whole sample into two sub-samples based on the level of democracy, by employing two samples which limited by 3 main coalition parties in government at most, such as re-elected government and non-alternated government in countries. Overall, the empirical results show that a leftist ruling party inhibits the progress of technical innovation, whereas a right-wing ruling party promotes the appearance of new technology. The effect of government ideology on innovation is not similar under some circumstances. More evidence is presented by using two dummy variables to represent left-wing and right-wing.

Network Approach in the Tourism Sector – Characteristics and Methods of Application

Purpose. The aim of the paper is to present possible applications of the network approach in the tourism sector, in scientific research (including empirical analysis) as well as in the organization of management processes of tourist destinations. Method. The paper is based on a critical domestic and foreign literature review, being the basis of the presented discussion and deductive inference. Findings. To achieve the aim of the paper, there the origin of the network approach was presented, its basic assumptions and ways of application in empirical research. The presented literature review was related to three basic ways of using the network approach in scientific works: from the perspective of an individual actor, the network as a whole and group of actors in the network (mixed approach). Premises of using each of those perspectives were presented, as well as examples of their application in domestic and foreign literature, and the effects of this application. It allowed to show that each of those three perspectives can be useful in the tourism sector and brings different types of benefits. Research and conclusion limitations. The paper does not aspire to constitute a full and complex presentation of problems connected to the network approach in tourism, but rather concentrates on the general presentation of some chosen ways of network analysis. For a reader to obtrain more specific knowledge about any of the presented network issues, additional reading of the literature presented in the paper’s references is needed. Practical implications. The paper orders considerations on the presented issue and therefore, is aimed at a better understanding of network analysis – regarding empirical research based on such an analysis (scientific value) as well as the management of networks in the tourism sector (application value for economic practice). Originality. In domestic literature, there is a lack of reviews regarding the different ways of network approach application in the tourism sector, and this paper is aimed at fulfilling this gap. Type of paper. Theoretical paper.

What individuals do (or do not do) when they get sick: A review of theoretical frameworks of illness behavior and their application in empirical research

Background: Decision making in the event of sickness has a major influence on people's lives. Moreover, patients' decisions about healthcare fundamentally determine the performance of the overall healthcare system in terms of a population's health, the quality of healthcare services, and the level of expenditures. Understanding what individuals do or do not do when they experience physical or mental symptoms of illness has therefore been a key topic in medical sociology and health psychology alike. In both disciplines, several prominent models of illness behavior have been developed and used in empirical analysis. Despite the large body of theoretical and empirical research, the debate about the “best” theoretical framework continues. Method: We review the key conceptual components of six models of illness behavior: the Health Belief Model, the Protection Motivation Theory, the Theory of Planned Behavior, the Common-Sense Model of Self-Regulation, Andersen's Behavioral Model of Health Service Use, and the Network-Episode Model. Moreover, we present a systematic review of systematic reviews and meta-analysis based on these models. We discuss the similarities and differences of how these models are operationalized and utilized in empirical research. Results: We show that the models fulfil different purposes by shedding light on different dimensions of illness behavior, e.g., preventive health behavior or the utilization of healthcare services in the event of illness symptoms. We provide a guide for authors how to select a well-suited model and how to assess the strengths but also the limitations of the chosen theoretical approach. Discussion: Such a knowledgeable application of each model can help to move research on illness behavior forward rather than the never-ending search of an “integrative framework of illness behavior”.

Examining Method Effect of Synonym and Antonym Test in Verbal Abilities Measure.

Many researchers have assumed that different methods could be substituted to measure the same attributes in assessment. Various models have been developed to accommodate the amount of variance attributable to the methods but these models application in empirical research is rare. The present study applied one of those models to examine whether method effects were presents in synonym and antonym tests. Study participants were 3,469 applicants to graduate school. The instrument used was the Graduate Academic Potential Test (PAPS), which includes synonym and antonym questions to measure verbal abilities. Our analysis showed that measurement models that using correlated trait–correlated methods minus one, CT-C(M–1), that separated trait and method effect into distinct latent constructs yielded slightly better values for multiple goodness-of-fit indices than one factor model. However, either for the synonym or antonym items, the proportion of variance accounted for by the method is smaller than trait variance. The correlation between factor scores of both methods is high (r = 0.994). These findings confirm that synonym and antonym tests represent the same attribute so that both tests cannot be treated as two unique methods for measuring verbal ability.

An Analytical Framework of Social Learning Facilitated by Participatory Methods

Social learning among different stakeholders is often a goal in problem solving contexts such as environmental management. Participatory methods (e.g., group model-building and role playing games) are frequently assumed to stimulate social learning. Yet understanding if and why this assumption is justified is quite limited. Difficulties arise from the complexity and context-dependence of processes influencing social learning. Furthermore, continuing discussion of the exact meaning and theoretical basis of social learning result in a limited capacity to assess and evaluate whether social learning has occurred. In this paper we introduce an analytical framework to develop an in depth understanding of essential processes underlying social learning facilitated by participatory methods. Concepts from different fields of science are discussed and integrated, including resource management, small group research and learning research. The individual and group perspectives are brought together via mental models and emergent roles. We added the direction of learning, being either convergent or divergent, to be able to explore if and when personal views on a problem converge into a shared understanding of a problem. The analysis of convergence and divergence of learning is facilitated through the use of the mental model concept. Methods for measurement of proposed indicators for social learning are also discussed. The framework developed provides a conceptual basis for the analysis of social learning facilitated by participatory methods and an operationalization for application in empirical research.

Introduction: Meeting in the Middle

AbstractCompromise is routinely evoked in everyday language and in scholarly debates across the social sciences. Yet, it has been subjected to relatively little systematic study. The introduction to this inter-disciplinary volume addresses the research gap in three steps. First, we offer three reasons for the study of compromise: its empirical omnipresence in politics, its theoretical potential to bridge the rationalist-constructivist divide, and its normative promise to recognize the plurality of society. Second, we introduce different approaches to the coherence, legitimacy and limits of compromise found in the existing explanatory and normative literatures. We discuss why these literatures need to speak to one another, and identify possible applications in empirical research. Third, we conceptualize compromise as one possible solution to a conflict. Distinct from both dissensus and consensus, all compromises share three characteristics: concessions, non-coercion and continued controversy. However, different types of compromise can be distinguished by how mutual, costly and painful concessions are; by whether all forms of coercion are absent; and by the degree to which the relevant parties’ grounds for conflict are transformed. We conclude by discussing the challenge and appeal of ‘politics as compromise’ in plural and complex societies.

Connecting Education and Cognitive Neuroscience: Where will the journey take us?

In recent years there have been growing calls for forging greater connections between education and cognitive neuroscience. As a consequence great hopes for the application of empirical research on the human brain to educational problems have been raised. In this article we contend that the expectation that results from cognitive neuroscience research will have a direct and immediate impact on educational practice are shortsighted and unrealistic. Instead, we argue that an infrastructure needs to be created, principally through interdisciplinary training, funding and research programs that allow for bidirectional collaborations between cognitive neuroscientists, educators and educational researchers to grow. We outline several pathways for scaffolding such a basis for the emerging field of ‘Mind, Brain and Education’ to flourish as well as the obstacles that are likely to be encountered along the path.

Peer-Reviewed Research and Individualized Education Programs (IEPs): An Examination of Intent and Impact

The reauthorized Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires Individualized Education Program (IEP) teams to base the selection of special education, related services, and supplementary aids and services on peer-reviewed research (PRR) to the extent practicable. This article examines the intended purpose of the PRR provision and its impact on the development of IEPs. Intent is examined through the legislative history of the PRR requirement. The impact of the PRR provision is illustrated in an analysis of litigation and a presentation of critical commentary on the application of empirical research, based on scientific method, to establish the efficacy of special education interventions. Recommendations to assist IEP teams in the selection of PRR-based methods are provided.

The concept of routines: some clarifications

The concept of an 'organisational routine' is central to the evolutionary theory of the firm. However, the concept itself is still unclear. There is not much consensus in the literature regarding its dimensions, its characteristics and its functions. Despite increasing use of the concept, not much conceptual progress has been made in recent years, as remarked by several of the leading writers on the topic. The objective of this paper is to contribute to further theoretical development of the concept of 'organisational routine', and to elaborate the research agenda on organisational routines. Both of these measures contribute to clarifying the concept and enabling its application in empirical research in the social sciences, thereby unlocking its potential for understanding organisations and organisational change. Several problems for conceptual progress are identified. Implications for the conceptualisation of 'organisational routines', and for the research agenda on organisational routines are drawn.

Measuring Political Preferences: Ratings for Members of the Swiss National Council

AbstractParty affiliation as the standard measure of political preferences of Swiss legislators is associated with several problems. To overcome these problems the authors develop ratings for members of the National Council, based on roll‐call votes. They discuss the construction of the ratings and their limitations in detail, and outline the importance of this kind of information for the participants of the political process, as well as some applications in empirical research.

Didaktische Phänomenologie als Grundlage für die Erforschung der Konstitution mentaler Objekte — Gedanken zu Freudenthals Buch

“Didactical phenomenology” has become one of FREUDENTHALs key-concepts in mathematics education. It indicates a research program which he made explicit in his book Didactical Phenomenology of Mathematical Structures (1983). There he analysed the central concepts of mathematics instruction. It was his intention to show that children do not learn them primarily as concepts but “grasp them as mental objects and carry them out as mental activities”. This paper points out some methodological roots of his approach and refers to possible applications in empirical research about the development of mathematical thinking in children.