Latent Difference Score Analysis Research Articles

Top-Down or Bottom-Up? The Reciprocal Longitudinal Relationship Between Athlete’s Domain-General Gratitude and Sport-Specific Gratitude: A Latent Difference Score Analysis

For athletes, gratitude has received substantial attention because it promotes their optimal functioning both in the sport domain specifically and in everyday life generally. The literature has, however, been equivocal as to whether it is domain-general gratitude—from the top-down perspective—or domain-specific gratitude—from the bottom-up perspective—that comes first and directs the other. Clarifying the relationship is important for designing more precise interventions. In this regard, we conducted a three-year, six-wave prospective study for youth athletes to examine the dynamic relationship between domain-general and sport-specific gratitude. Our latent difference score analysis indicated that a reciprocal model between the two levels of gratitude was superior to other, nonreciprocal models, suggesting that athletes who had higher domain-general gratitude would increase in sport-specific gratitude, which in turn contributed to increased domain-general gratitude across the six time points over the three-year period. Our study contributes to gratitude theories by uncovering the potential directional relationship for various levels of gratitude.

Is the narrative the message? The relationship between suicide-related narratives in media reports and subsequent suicides.

When journalists report on the details of a suicide, the way that they contextualize the meaning of the event (i.e. the 'narrative') can have significant consequences for readers. The 'Werther' and 'Papageno' narrative effects refer to increases and decreases in suicides across populations following media reports on suicidal acts or mastery of crises, respectively. The goal of this study was to investigate the impact of these different narrative constructs on subsequent suicides. This study examined the change in suicide counts over time in Toronto, Canada. It used latent difference score analysis, examining suicide-related print media reports in the Toronto media market (2011-2014). Articles (N = 6367) were coded as having a potentially harmful narrative if they described suicide in a celebrity or described a suicide death in a non-celebrity and included the suicide method. Articles were coded as having potentially protective narratives if they included at least one element of protective content (e.g. alternatives to suicide) without including any information about suicidal behaviour (i.e. suicide attempts or death). Latent difference score longitudinal multigroup analyses identified a dose-response relationship in which the trajectory of suicides following harmful 'Werther' narrative reports increased over time, while protective 'Papageno' narrative reports declined. The latent difference score model demonstrated significant goodness of fit and parameter estimates, with each group demonstrating different trajectories of change in reported suicides over time: (χ2[6], N = 6367) = 13.16; χ2/df = 2.19; Akaike information criterion = 97.16, comparative fit index = 0.96, root mean square error of approximation = 0.03. Our findings support the notion that the 'narrative' matters when reporting on suicide. Specifically, 'Werther' narratives of suicides in celebrities and suicides in non-celebrities where the methods were described were associated with more subsequent suicides while 'Papageno' narratives of survival and crisis mastery without depictions of suicidal behaviours were associated with fewer subsequent suicides. These results may inform efforts to prevent imitation suicides.

Gender differences in cross-informant discrepancies in aggressive and prosocial behavior: A latent difference score analysis.

Cross-informant discrepancies (CIDs) in youth behavior are common. Given that these same behaviors often show or are perceived to show gender differences, it is important to understand how informant perceptions and their discrepancies are affected by gender. In n = 1,048 (51% male) Grade 5 (age 11) Swiss youth, self- versus teacher (n = 261) CIDs were explored using latent difference score (LDS) modeling. CIDs in prosociality (β = -.15) and aggression (β = .14) were predicted by child gender after adjusting for a range of covariates. Males reported more aggression than was attributed to them by teachers whereas females reported less aggression than was attributed to them. Both genders reported more prosociality than was attributed to them, with a larger discrepancy for males. Accounting for gender-related informant differences could help improve assessments used to ascertain whether clinically significant problems are present. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Teachers’ and students’ perceptions of students’ ability and importance value in math and reading: A latent difference score analysis of intra-individual cross-domain differences

Informed by Eccles and colleagues’ expectancy-value theory and Möller and Marsh’s dimensional comparison theory, we examined cross-domain intra-individual differences in elementary teachers’ (N = 57) and their students’ (N = 469) ratings of students’ ability and subjective importance of math and reading. Latent difference score analyses revealed that students perceived greater intra-individual differences in their own math versus reading ability than did their teachers. Analogous results emerged for students’ and teachers’ ratings of students’ valuing (i.e., perceived importance) of math versus reading, suggesting differing dimensional comparison processes for students’ self-judgments vs. their teachers’ judgments. Cross-domain differences in teachers’ and students’ perceptions were positively associated for ratings of students’ ability but not for ratings of students’ perceived importance. Moreover, intra-individual differences varied substantially across students, in both students’ and teachers’ ratings. Students’ gender and prior achievement in math and reading contributed to this variation.

Anxiety Sensitivity Accelerates the Temporal Changes in Obsessions and Compulsions During Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Although obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is effectively treated by cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), less is known about mechanisms underlying treatment response. Anxiety sensitivity (AS) may impact symptom change (velocity) and the rate of change in velocity (acceleration) during CBT for OCD. Latent Difference Score (LDS) analysis was used to show path-analytic dynamic modelling of OCD symptom velocity and acceleration during CBT, as a function of baseline AS. Eighty-four participants with a principal diagnosis of OCD completed 12 weeks of CBT group therapy, and measures assessing AS at pre-treatment, and obsession and compulsion severity at pre-treatment, sessions 4, 8, and end of treatment. LDS velocity models demonstrated that higher levels of baseline AS were associated with subsequent elevations in obsessions throughout treatment, and obsession scores were temporally associated with subsequent changes in compulsion scores. An LDS acceleration model demonstrated that higher levels of baseline AS scores were associated with rapid increases in the severity of obsessions, whereas lower AS scores were associated with rapid decreases in the severity of obsessions. These results have implications for theoretical and treatment modelling of obsessions and compulsions, as well as AS, in OCD. Higher levels of baseline AS negatively impact response to CBT for OCD.

Examining the Interrelation Among Change Processes: Decentering and Anticipatory Processing Across Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Social Anxiety Disorder

As evidence grows supporting certain mechanisms of change in psychological treatments and we improve statistical approaches to measuring them, it is important that we also explore how mechanisms and processes are related to each other, and how they together affect treatment outcomes. To answer these questions about interrelating processes and mechanisms, we need to take advantage of frequent assessment and modeling techniques that allow for an examination of the influence of one mechanism on another over time. Within cognitive behavioral therapy, studies have shown support for both decentering, the ability to observe thoughts and feelings as objective events in the mind, and anticipatory processing, the repetitive thinking about upcoming social situations, as potentially related mechanisms of change. Therefore, the current study examined weekly ratings of decentering and a single-item anticipatory processing question to examine the interrelation among these change mechanisms in 59 individuals who received a 12-weeks of Cognitive Behavioral Group Therapy for social anxiety disorder. Overall, these results found that both anticipatory processing and decentering changed over the course therapy for clients. Change in both anticipatory processing and decentering was related to outcome. The bivariate latent difference score analysis showed that anticipatory processing was a leading indicator of change in decentering, but not the reverse, indicating that change in anticipatory processing is leading to change in decentering. It may be that with the focus on cognitive reappraisal in this treatment, that reducing anticipatory processing is freeing up the cognitive resources for decentering to occur.

Cognitive Moderation of CBT: Disorder-Specific or Transdiagnostic Predictors of Treatment Response

Cognitive vulnerability research has focused on cognitive variables that are hypothesized to confer risk to specific disorders within the mood and anxiety spectrum, while transdiagnostic research has emphasized common risk factors across disorders. The purpose of the present study was to test specific versus common cognitive predictors of treatment response across three treatment groups. Participants (N = 373) with major depressive disorder (MDD; N = 187, panic disorder with/without agoraphobia (PD/A; N = 85), and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD; N = 101) completed measures of cognitive vulnerability (performance-oriented dysfunctional attitudes, anxiety sensitivity, and obsessive beliefs) and disorder-specific symptom measures at pre- and post CBT treatment. Based on latent difference score analysis, pre-treatment performance-oriented dysfunctional attitudes alone predicted improvement in depressive symptoms in the MDD group; pre-treatment anxiety sensitivity alone predicted reductions in anxious arousal symptoms in the PD/A group; and pre-treatment obsessive beliefs alone predicted change in OCD symptoms in the OCD group. These findings provide support for disorder-specific cognitive factors in the prediction of CBT treatment outcomes and provide guidance towards ways in which current CBT approaches may benefit from augmentation or adjustment.

What Drives OCD Symptom Change During CBT Treatment? Temporal Relationships Among Obsessions and Compulsions

Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) is an effective treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). However, less is known about how obsessions and compulsions change during treatment, either in tandem, sequentially, or independently. The current study used latent difference score analysis to show path-analytic dynamic modeling of OCD symptom change during CBT. Four competing models of the temporal relationship between obsessions and compulsions were examined: no coupling (obsessions and compulsions are not dynamically related), goal directed (obsessions lead to subsequent changes in compulsions), habit driven (compulsions lead to subsequent changes in obsessions), and reciprocal. Treatment seeking participants (N = 84) with a principal diagnosis of OCD completed 12 weeks of CBT group therapy and completed measures assessing obsession and compulsion severity at pretreatment, Sessions 4 and 8, and end of treatment. Bivariate results supported the goal directed traditional CBT model, where obsession scores are temporally associated with subsequent changes in compulsion scores. These results have implications for theoretical and treatment modelling of obsessions and compulsions in OCD treatment.

Parent and Child Trauma Symptoms During Child-Parent Psychotherapy: A Prospective Cohort Study of Dyadic Change.

Five randomized controlled trials have shown that child-parent psychotherapy (CPP) improves trauma symptoms in children. Less is known about parent symptoms or moderators of symptom change. In a sample of 199 parent (81% biological mother; 54% Latina/o) and child (aged 2 to 6 years; 52% male; 49% Latina/o) dyads who participated in an open treatment study of CPP, this study investigated whether parent and child symptoms similarly decreased during treatment and whether improvement was moderated by parent, child, and treatment characteristics. Parents completed baseline and posttreatment interviews regarding exposure to traumatic events, posttraumatic stress symptomatology (PTSS), and other mental health indices. Latent difference score analysis showed that PTSS significantly decreased by more than 0.5 SD for parents and children. The PTSS improvement in parents was associated with reductions in child avoidance, r = .19, p = .040, and hyperarousal, r = .33, p < .001. Girls showed a greater reduction than boys in reexperiencing, β = -.13, p = .018, and hyperarousal, β = -.20, p = .001. Contrary to expectations, parent and child improvement in PTSS was greater for those with fewer parental lifetime stressors, βrange = .15 to .33, and for those who participated in fewer treatment sessions, βrange = .15 to .21. The extent of improvement in parent PTSS varied based on clinician expertise, β = -.20, p = .009. Significant reductions in parent and child PTSS were observed during community-based treatment, with CPP and symptom improvement varying according to child, parent, and treatment characteristics.

Latent profiles of work motivation in adolescents in relation to work expectations, goal engagement, and changes in work experiences

Motivation plays a key role in successful entry into working life. Based on a cross-sectional and a one-year longitudinal study, we used a person-centered approach to explore work-related motivation (i.e., autonomous goals, positive affect, and occupational self-efficacy) among 577 students in 8th grade (Study 1) and 949 adolescents in vocational training (Study 2). Based on latent profile analysis, in both studies we identified four groups that were characterized by different levels of overall motivation and one group characterized by low positive affect and mean levels in autonomous goals and self-efficacy. Profiles characterized by high levels of motivation showed the highest levels of positive work expectations and goal engagement and the lowest levels of negative work expectations in Study 1 and the highest levels of person-job fit, work engagement, and job satisfaction in Study 2. Moreover, latent difference score analysis showed that motivational profiles predicted changes in person-job fit and work engagement across one year but not in job satisfaction. The results imply that career counselors should be aware of characteristic motivational patterns of clients that may require specific counseling approaches.

Grandparent Caregiving and Self-Rated Health among Rural Chinese Older Adults: A Longitudinal Study Using Latent Difference Score Analysis

Background: Caregiving for grandchildren has effect on the physical health of older adults. Physical well-being may also affect the daily activities of grandparent caregivers. Therefore, there may be a reciprocal effect between grandparent caregiving and health. However, few studies have tested this dynamic relationship. This study examined how grandparent caregiving and self-rated health (SRH) changes over time among rural Chinese older adults and whether a reciprocal effect exists between them. Methods: Four waves of the longitudinal study of older adults in Anhui province of China were used for this study, featuring 1,696 older grandparents who completed at least the first wave in 2001 and were followed up or not in 2003, 2006, and 2009. Latent difference score analyses were applied using Mplus 5.1 and Amos 5. Results: Results show that both grandparent caregiving and SRH decreased significantly over time. Grandparent caregiving in a previous wave significantly predicted subsequent change in SRH, indicating that more grandparent caregiving resulted in a greater change in SRH. On the other hand, SRH had a significant effect on subsequent change in grandparent caregiving, showing that better SRH led to lesser changes in grandparent caregiving in later waves. SRH played a leading role in the prediction effect. Conclusions and implications: This study found a reciprocal effect between grandparent caregiving and SRH. This indicates that grandparent caregiving can be physically demanding and may lead to greater changes in SRH, whereas good SRH is a necessary precondition of caring for grandchildren. The study also found a leading predicting role of SRH, which suggests that SRH as a personal resource is extremely important because it partially determines whether and how intensely rural Chinese grandparents can care for their grandchildren.

Mindfulness and acceptance-based group therapy and traditional cognitive behavioral group therapy for social anxiety disorder: Mechanisms of change

The present study investigated mechanisms of change for two group treatments for social anxiety disorder (SAD): cognitive behavioral group therapy (CBGT) and mindfulness and acceptance-based group therapy (MAGT). Participants were treatment completers (n = 37 for MAGT, n = 32 for CBGT) from a randomized clinical trial. Cognitive reappraisal was the hypothesized mechanism of change for CBGT. Mindfulness and acceptance were hypothesized mechanisms of change for MAGT. Latent difference score (LDS) analysis results demonstrate that cognitive reappraisal coupling (in which cognitive reappraisal is negatively associated with the subsequent rate of change in social anxiety) had a greater impact on social anxiety for CBGT than MAGT. The LDS bidirectional mindfulness model (mindfulness predicts subsequent change in social anxiety; social anxiety predicts subsequent change in mindfulness) was supported for both treatments. Results for acceptance were less clear. Cognitive reappraisal may be a more important mechanism of change for CBGT than MAGT, whereas mindfulness may be an important mechanism of change for both treatments.

Attention regulates anger and fear to predict changes in adolescent risk-taking behaviors.

Regulation of negative affect is critical to healthy development in childhood and adolescence. We conducted a longitudinal study examining the moderating role of attention control in the effects of anger and fear on changes in risk-taking behaviors from early to middle adolescence. The sample involved participants from the Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (SECCYD), assessed at 9, 11, and 15 years of age. Composite scores for anger, fear, and attention control were computed using indicators from multiple informants, and risk-taking behaviors were assessed based on adolescents' self-reports. Latent difference score analysis indicated significant moderating effects of attention control showing that increased anger between 9 and 11 years was related to increases in risk-taking behaviors between 11 and 15 years only for adolescents with low attention control but not for adolescents with high attention control. In contrast, significant moderating effects of attention control for the link between fear and risk-taking behaviors suggested increased fear between 9 and 11 years tended to be associated with decreases in risk-taking behaviors between 11 and 15 years only for adolescents with high attention control, but not for adolescents with low attention control. Attention control regulates the connections between negative affect such as anger and fear with changes in adolescent risk-taking behaviors. Our data suggest the protective role of strong attention control against the development of risk-taking behaviors in adolescence as it demotes the effects of anger and promotes the effects of fear.

Does productive role occupancy prevent depression among older rural Chinese adults? A latent difference score analysis

Objectives: Depression has been reported as common among older rural Chinese adults, who often face limited access to healthcare services and resources. Empirical studies conducted in the West have shown beneficial effects of productive engagement on psychological well-being. However, the mechanisms by which engagement in productive activities leads to and results from improved mental health remain unclear.Method: Utilizing role enhancement and social resource theories, the present study investigated the relationship between productive role occupancy and depression among older Chinese adults in rural areas over 8 years. Using four waves of data from the Well-Being of Elderly in Anhui Province of China study, we employed bivariate latent different score analysis to examine the temporal sequence of productive role occupancy and depression among 1696 older adults.Results: Findings indicated that trajectories of productive role occupancy and depression rose across the four waves. There is evidence for self-feedback effects in productive role occupancy and depression. Depression had a significant effect on subsequent changes in productive role occupancy (β = −0.042, p = 0.000), whereas productive role occupancy had no significant effect on subsequent changes in depression.Conclusion: The mental well-being of participants worsened over time. Engaging in productive activities had no effect on mental health status, and rural older adults with poor mental health were less likely to engage in productive activities over time. Findings suggest that psychological well-being as a personal resource significantly affects how productively Chinese adults age in late life.

Intensity of Grandparent Caregiving and Life Satisfaction Among Rural Chinese Older Adults

This study examined how life satisfaction and grandparent caregiving intensity changed over time among rural Chinese older adults, and whether there was a leading predictor between grandparent caregiving intensity and life satisfaction. Using 4 waves of data from the Well-being of Elderly in Anhui Province of China (N = 1704), we applied latent difference score analysis to explore this relationship. Results indicated that grandparent caregiving intensity decreased and life satisfaction increased over time. There was a lagged effect between grandparent caregiving intensity and life satisfaction, and life satisfaction demonstrated a leading prediction role between these 2 variables. This study confirmed the potentially rewarding aspect of grandparent caregiving, which may lead to greater life satisfaction. The results also revealed that psychological well-being among grandparents is very important for performing activities, such as caregiving.

The relationship of perfectionism, depression, and therapeutic alliance during treatment for depression: Latent difference score analysis.

The authors examined the longitudinal relationship of patient-rated perfectionism, clinician-rated depression, and observer-rated therapeutic alliance using the latent difference score (LDS) analytic framework. Outpatients involved in the Treatment for Depression Collaborative Research Program completed measures of perfectionism and depression at 5 occasions throughout treatment, with therapeutic alliance measured early in therapy. First, LDS analyses of perfectionism and depression established longitudinal change models. Further LDS analyses revealed significant longitudinal interrelationships, in which perfectionism predicted the subsequent rate of depression change, consistent with a personality vulnerability model of depression. In the final LDS model, the strength of the therapeutic alliance significantly predicted longitudinal perfectionism change, and perfectionism significantly predicted the rate of depression change throughout therapy. These results clarify the patterns of growth and change for these indicators throughout depression treatment, demonstrating an alternative method for evaluating longitudinal dynamics in therapy.