Multilevel Mediation Model Research Articles

Improving workplace safety through mindful organizing: participative safety self-efficacy as a mediational link between collective mindfulness and employees’ safety citizenship

Mindful organizing is a team-level capability that allows teams in high-risk environments to anticipate when something can potentially go wrong and adapt their operations just in time to protect the organizational system from negative consequences. This study aimed to extend our understanding of how mindful organizing affects employees’ propensity to engage in a broad range of safety citizenship behaviours through the mediation of participative safety self-efficacy. Participative safety self-efficacy is a psychological state that enables individuals to have confidence in their capability to engage in constructive behaviours that go beyond the formal requirements of their job description. A multilevel mediation model was tested using data collected from a large sample of chemical workers (N = 443) operating in fifty work teams. The findings showed that mindful organizing on a team level fosters both individual safety citizenship (helping; voice; initiative) and prescribed safety compliance through enhancing individual participative self-efficacy. This mediation relationship is significantly stronger for safety citizenship than for safety compliance.

Multi-level effects of authentic leadership on self-actualization at work – the mediating roles of authentic followership and basic psychological need satisfaction

Authentic leaders are self-aware of their values and beliefs and continuously strive to create meaningful organizational contexts that promote the growth and selfactualization of subordinates. Following self-determination theory (SDT), this study examines whether follower authenticity and basic psychological need satisfaction (BPNS) serve as mediators between the association of authentic leadership and indicators of self-actualization at work. We used the data of 53 team leaders and 171 team members from one global company. Results of three multi-level mediation models indicated that followers? authenticity and BPNS mediate the link between group leaders? authentic leadership and followers? self-actualization at work. In line with fundamental assumptions of SDT, our findings suggest that follower self-actualization is influenced by authentic leadership but also emerges from a synergistic effect between leader and follower authenticity and follower BPNS. We discuss how future research and practice may promote employee authenticity and personal development in work environments.

Associations Between Maternal Negative Affectivity and Young Children’s Disruptive Behavior Problems: The Mediating Effect of Callous-Unemotional Traits

The current study examined associations between maternal negative affectivity (NA) and child disruptive behavior problems. The mediating role of child callous-unemotional (CU) traits in these relationships was also investigated. A multilevel mediation modeling approach was adopted using a sample of 100 families with children between 2.5 and 5.5 years of age (N = 201; mean age = 3.8, standard deviation = 1.0). The mediation models showed significant mediating effects of maternal NA through CU traits for ADHD (β = 0.12, p<.01), ODD (β =0.13, p<.01), and aggression (β =0.16, p<.001), and a significant direct effect for aggression (β = 0.12, p<.05). A structural equation modeling analysis was also performed, and overall, the results were consistent with that from mediation models, which suggested that child CU traits were significantly correlated with maternal NA (β = 0.252, p<.001), ADHD (β = 0.504, p<.001), ODD (β = 0.545, p<.001), and aggression (β = 0.686, p<.001). Our results indicated that maternal NA could serve as a potential risk factor for child CU, which, in turn, may contribute to disruptive behavior during early childhood.

Momentary impulsivity interferes with emotion regulation strategy prioritization in everyday life in remitted depression

BackgroundSelectively prioritizing some emotion regulation (ER) strategies over others has been shown to predict well-being; however, it is unclear what mechanisms underlie this process. Impulsivity, which captures both top-down control of and bottom-up reactivity to emotions, is one potential mechanism of interest. MethodsUsing multilevel mediation modeling, we investigated whether lower ER strategy prioritization (i.e., lower between-strategy variability) mediates the relationship between greater momentary impulsivity and lower ER success in 82 individuals with remitted depression or no history of a mental disorder (1558 observations). To determine the specific effect of impulsivity, we covaried for mean regulatory effort and negative affect. ResultsThe indirect effect of impulsivity on ER success was significant at the within-person, but not between-person, level. Specifically, in moments when individuals endorsed more impulsivity than usual, they showed less ER strategy prioritization than usual, which predicted less successful ER. Individuals who, on average, reported more impulsivity indicated lower ER strategy prioritization, but no difference in ER success. ConclusionER strategy prioritization mediated the within-person relationship between greater impulsivity and lower ER success. Interventions focused on training individuals to selectively prioritize ER strategies may improve ER success, particularly when individuals are feeling more impulsive than usual.

Comparing DIC and WAIC for multilevel models with missing data.

In Bayesian statistics, the most widely used criteria of Bayesian model assessment and comparison are Deviance Information Criterion (DIC) and Watanabe-Akaike Information Criterion (WAIC). We use a multilevel mediation model as an illustrative example to compare different types of DIC and WAIC. More specifically, we aim to compare the performance of conditional and marginal DICs and WAICs, and investigate their performance with missing data. We focus on two versions of DIC ( and ) and one version of WAIC. In addition, we explore whether it is necessary to include the nuisance models of incomplete exogenous variables in likelihood. Based on the simulation results, whether is better than and WAIC and whether we should include the nuisance models of exogenous variables in likelihood functions depend on whether we use marginal or conditional likelihoods. Overall, we find that the marginal likelihood based- that excludes the likelihood of covariate models generally had the highest true model selection rates.

Antecedents and consequences of corporate social responsibility: a test of multilevel mediating processes

PurposeDrawing on social exchange theory and traditional Chinese leadership theory, this research examines employees' perceptions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) using a multilevel mediation model. It also examines the possibility that meaningful work mediates the relationship between perceived CSR and work engagement.Design/methodology/approachSurvey data were collected from 605 employees of 103 departments across 35 companies in Taiwan. Multilevel path models and hypotheses were tested using Mplus structural-equation modeling software.FindingsThe results show that department-level CSR perceptions were positively related to employee-level work engagement and that CSR was a mediating factor between department managers' moral leadership and employee-level work engagement. Additionally, meaningful work played a cross-level mediating role between CSR perceptions and work engagement.Practical implicationsFor organizational managers, these findings imply that enterprises should practice CSR and guide their employees in its correct interpretation. They also reinforce the idea that department leaders should behave ethically, because this will encourage their employees to develop positive perceptions of the company's CSR implementation and thus to be more engaged in their work. Lastly, incorporating CSR programs into training materials and encouraging employees to actively participate in such programs' development, deployment and evaluation should help make work meaningful for employees and further enhance their engagement with it.Originality/valueThis study explains how a cross-level mechanism connects department-level moral leadership to employee-level work engagement in a Chinese cultural context.

Body-related self-conscious emotions, self-compassion, and dietary restraint in Canadian undergraduate university students: A multilevel mediation and moderation analysis.

Self-compassion has an inverse association with dietary restraint however, the mechanisms linking self-compassion and dietary restraint are not clear. This study aimed to determine to what extent self-compassion was inversely concurrently related to dietary restraint, indirectly through body-related self-conscious emotions, and to what extent trait self-compassion moderated the concurrent within-person association between body-related self-conscious emotions and dietary restraint. Data was collected from 224 Canadian university students who reported on trait self-compassion at baseline and body-related shame, guilt, envy, and embarrassment, and dietary restraint biweekly between November 2020 and August 2021. Results from a 2-1-1 multilevel mediation model showed that trait self-compassion was indirectly concurrently related to dietary restraint through body-related shame, guilt, envy, and embarrassment. Results from the moderation model showed that there was a significant positive concurrent within-person association between body-related shame, envy, and embarrassment, but not guilt, with dietary restraint. These relationships were not moderated by trait self-compassion. This study adds to our understanding of the concurrent association between body-related self-conscious emotions and dietary restraint, and the mechanisms through which self-compassion is related to dietary restraint. Given body-related self-conscious emotions were related to dietary restraint at both the within-person and between-person level, both compassion-focused interventions that aim to improve general levels of body-related self-conscious emotions and interventions that aim to overcome spikes in these emotions compared with one's usual level are warranted. Negative body-related self-conscious emotions were related to higher levels of dietary restraint both across individuals and within individuals over time; and may play a mechanistic role in linking self-compassion with dietary restraint. Interventions aimed at reducing negative body-related self-conscious emotions are warranted in the prevention of eating disorder psychopathology.

Effects of automated communication on team members’ activity and social presence awareness, commitment, and motivation in human-autonomy teams

Activity and social presence awareness of team members are crucial to promote positive team outcomes such as team commitment and motivation. Communication between the team members is known to develop this awareness. Software agents are increasingly involved in critical team processes and functions, for example, in automated communication. Mostly this automation is associated with performance boosts. However, how team members' social presence and activity awareness and consequently their commitment and motivation changes when task-related communication is automated or not, has been less studied so far. Therefore, in this laboratory study, we manipulated within teams whether task-related communication among team members was automated by a software agent or not to study its effects on team members' commitment and motivation mediated by their social presence and activity awareness. On three measurement points, we assessed team members' activity and social presence awareness, commitment, and motivation in a sample of 360 team members within 120 teams. Results of a fourfold multi-level mediation model supported three mediation processes. When the agent was activated at measurement point two, motivation and commitment decreased due to lower social presence awareness. When the software agent was deactivated at measurement point three, motivation and commitment increased due to higher social presence and activity awareness. This research has implications for the implementation of software agents in organizations and teams, and contributes to a deeper, more elaborate understanding of how software agents affect team members' activity and social presence awareness and its’ outcomes in human-autonomy teams.

Demographic Factors, Medication Adherence, and Post-transplant Health Outcomes: A Longitudinal Multilevel Modeling Approach.

Few studies in pediatric solid organ transplantation have examined non-adherence to immunosuppressive medication over time and its associations with demographic factors and post-transplant outcomes including late acute rejection and hospitalizations. We examined longitudinal variation in patient Medication Level Variability Index (MLVI) adherence data from pediatric kidney, liver, and heart transplant recipients. Patient and administrative data from the United Network for Organ Sharing were linked with electronic health records and MLVI values for 332 patients. Multilevel mediation modeling indicated comparatively more variation in MLVI values between patients than within patients, longitudinally, over 10years post transplant. MLVI values significantly predicted late acute rejection and hospitalization. MLVI partially mediated patient factors and post-transplant outcomes for patient age indicating adolescents may benefit most from intervention efforts. Results demonstrate the importance of longitudinal assessment of adherence and differences among patients. Efforts to promote medication adherence should be adapted to high-risk patients to increase likelihood of adherence.

Does self-efficacy mediate the relationship between disease impact and depression symptoms among people with fibromyalgia? A longitudinal multilevel mediation model

Does self-efficacy mediate the relationship between disease impact and depression symptoms among people with fibromyalgia? A longitudinal multilevel mediation model

Examining the role of craving in affect regulation models of binge eating: Evidence from an ecological momentary assessment study.

Affect regulation models hypothesize that aversive affective states drive binge-eating behavior, which serves to regulate unpleasant emotions. Research using ecological momentary assessment (EMA) demonstrates that increases in guilt most strongly predict subsequent binge-eating episodes, raising the question: why would individuals with binge-eating pathology engage in a binge-eating episode when they feel guilty? Food craving is a robust predictor of binge eating and is commonly associated with subsequent feelings of guilt. The current study used EMA to test the hypothesis that food craving may promote increased feelings of guilt, which then predict an increased risk of binge eating within a sample of 109 individuals with binge-eating disorder. Multilevel mediation models indicated that increased momentary craving at Time 1 directly predicted a greater likelihood of binge eating at Time 2, and craving also indirectly predicted binge eating at Time 2 through momentary increases in guilt at Time 2. In other words, experiencing food craving at one time point was related to an increased likelihood of binge eating at the next time point, and a portion of this influence was attributable to increasing feelings of guilt. These results challenge simple affect regulation models of binge eating, suggesting that food-related anticipatory reward processes (i.e., craving) may be the primary driver of binge-eating risk and account for the increases in guilt commonly observed prior to binge-eating episodes. Although experimental studies are needed to confirm this possibility, these results suggest the importance of addressing food cravings within interventions for binge-eating disorder. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Entrepreneurial leadership and employee creativity: a multilevel mediation model of entrepreneurial self-efficacy

Purpose The current study, which is based on social learning theory and social cognitive theory, intends to investigate the impact of entrepreneurial leadership on employee creativity at both the individual and team levels. In particular, the authors predict a mediating mechanism at both levels: employees’ entrepreneurial self-efficacy. Further, the authors consider whether the climate of support for innovation is a contextual element affecting the relationship between employees’ perceptions of entrepreneurial leadership and their own entrepreneurial self-efficacy.Design/methodology/approach The research hypotheses were tested using multilevel structural equation modeling on 191 employees nested in 49 entrepreneurial ventures in China.Findings The results indicated that entrepreneurial leadership positively correlates with employee creativity at individual level. Moreover, this study found that individual followers’ entrepreneurial self-efficacy partially mediates the association between individual perceptions of entrepreneurial leadership and employee creativity, whereas team members’ entrepreneurial self-efficacy fully mediates the association between team members’ perceptions of supervisors’ entrepreneurial leadership and employee creativity. Further, this research demonstrates the role of team-level climate of support for innovation as a boundary condition that strengthens the effect of entrepreneurial leadership on individual entrepreneurial self-efficacy.Originality/value Considering entrepreneurial self-efficacy to be a type of entrepreneurial context-specific self-efficacy, this study presents one of the first empirical examples of the mediating function of entrepreneurial self-efficacy in the association between entrepreneurial leadership and employee creativity. Additionally, this research demonstrates the role of team-level climate of support for innovation as a boundary condition that strengthens the effect of entrepreneurial leadership on individual entrepreneurial self-efficacy. Further, this study provides a methodological contribution by simultaneously assessing all three variables of the mediation process at the individual and team levels: entrepreneurial leadership, entrepreneurial self-efficacy and employee creativity.

A multilevel investigation of the cascading effect of entrepreneurial leadership on employee creativity: Evidence from Chinese hospitality and tourism firms

This study aims to elucidate the cascading effect of entrepreneurial leadership on fostering employee creativity in hospitality and tourism firms. Drawing upon multiple theories (e.g., the affective events theory and conservation of resources theory) and utilizing a multilevel mediation model, this study predicts and examines the cross-level indirect relationship between entrepreneurial leadership and employee creativity, which is sequentially transmitted through employees’ surface acting and work-related flow. Based on a 2-wave longitudinal design, survey data were obtained from multiple sources consisting of 47 leaders and 352 employees in Chinese hospitality and tourism firms. Multilevel structural equation modeling (MSEM) analysis provides empirical support for the cross-level mediation model. This study is among the first to provide empirical evidence of the cross-level effect of entrepreneurial leadership on workplace creativity via surface acting and work-related flow in the service industry, which enriches the leadership literature in the tourism discipline.

Direct and indirect effects of social dominance orientation on hate speech perpetration via empathy and moral disengagement among adolescents: A multilevel mediation model.

Although it is known that social dominance orientation directly affects hate speech perpetration, few studies have explored the mechanisms by which this effect takes place during adolescence. Based on the socio-cognitive theory of moral agency, we aimed to fill this gap in the literature by exploring the direct and indirect effects of social dominance orientation on hate speech perpetration in offline and online settings. The sample included seventh, eigth, and ninth graders (N = 3225) (51.2% girls, 37.2% with an immigrant background) from 36 Swiss and German schools who completed a survey about hate speech, social dominance orientation, empathy, and moral disengagement. A multilevel mediation path model revealed that social dominance orientation had a direct effect on offline and online hate speech perpetration. Moreover, social dominance also had indirect effects via low levels of empathy and high levels of moral disengagement. No gender differences were observed. Our findings are discussed regarding the potential contribution to preventing hate speech during adolescence.

Past Relational Experiences and Social Interaction: Direct, Moderated, and Mediated Associations Between Relational Difficulty, Communication, and Perception in Two Samples

This study examined the relationship between perceptions of relational history, namely, past relational challenges, and everyday social interaction experiences. In efforts to build upon and extend previous research, hypotheses directed toward replication and extension were tested in two experience sampling datasets ( N = 120 and 220). Consistent support was found for the idea that people with a history of relational difficulties tend to perceive less interaction partner responsiveness, lower well-being, and higher stress during social interactions. Support was also found in a sample of adults for a multilevel mediation model whereby negative relations with others negatively predicted partner responsiveness through stress and partner liking. Results are interpreted based on affection-, appraisal-, and resource-based theories and potential differences in relational experiences at unique life stages and phases of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A serial mediation model testing associations between teacher–student relationship, resilience, autonomous learning and academic performance in the Chinese EFL context

The current study investigated the relationship between students’ perceived teacher–student relationship (SPTSR) and their performance in English via multiple mediation effects of resilience and autonomous learning in the Chinese English as a foreign language (EFL) context. The participants were 15,184 eighth-graders from China. Results of the multilevel mediation model revealed that after controlling for students’ gender, socioeconomic status (SES), and school type, the positive association between SPTSR and students’ academic outcomes in English was partially and serially mediated by the resilience and autonomous learning. The current study sheds new light on the crucial mediating roles of resilience and autonomous learning in improving EFL learners’ English proficiency. We recommend that English language teachers establish a friendly and equal classroom climate, which may enhance students’ resilience to cope with learning setbacks. Such positive beliefs help stimulate students’ autonomy in English language learning, which in turn promotes performance in learning English.

Effects of the Prevention Program “HateLess. Together against Hatred” on Adolescents’ Empathy, Self-efficacy, and Countering Hate Speech

Currently, there is a lack of empirically evaluated prevention programs targeting hate speech among adolescents. This is problematic because hate speech jeopardizes adolescents’ well-being and social integration. To this end, this study aims to evaluate the short-term effects of the newly developed anti-hate speech prevention program, “HateLess. Together against Hatred”, on adolescents’ empathy, self-efficacy, and counter-speech. Eight hundred and twenty adolescents between 12 and 16 (M = 13.27, SD = 1.04) from 11 German schools participated in this study. More specifically, 567 adolescents participated in the one-week prevention program, and 253 participants were assigned to the control group. Repeated measures ANOVAs showed that HateLess was successful, as there was a significant increase in empathy, self-efficacy, and counter-speech in the intervention group from the pretest (T1) to the posttest (T2) one month after the intervention. In contrast, no changes were found among adolescents in the control group. A multilevel mediation model revealed that the effect of being a member of the intervention group on counter-speech was partially mediated via empathy and self-efficacy. The findings indicate that HateLess is an effective, cost-efficient approach to enhance adolescents’ counter-speech directly and indirectly by altering the skills they need to become informed citizens in democratic societies.

Cognitive behavioral stress management affects different dimensions of benefit finding in breast cancer survivors: a multilevel mediation model

Objective. This study aimed to confirm the multidimensionality of benefit finding (BF), or silver linings within the cancer experience, assess the effects of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) on those dimensions, and test the mediating role of perceived stress management skills targeted by CBSM. Methods. This secondary analysis used data from 240 women with stage 0-III breast cancer who completed measures of BF (Benefit Finding Scale) and perceived stress management skills (PSMS) at baseline, 6-months, and 12-months post-randomization into CBSM or a psycho-education condition. We tested a six-factor BF model using Confirmatory Factor Analysis and assessed CBSM-related changes in BF and PSMS using Hierarchical Linear Models. We included significantly affected BF dimensions in mediation models. Results. A six-factor model of BF had good fit [χ2(212) = 391.5, p < .001; CFI = 0.94; RMSEA = 0.06; SRMR = 0.04]. CBSM positively affected changes in personal growth (β = 0.06, p = .01), social relations (β = 0.05, p = .05), and worldview (β = 0.05, p = .02) BF. Perceived relaxation skill increases significantly mediated changes in personal growth (β = 0.03, p = .04) and social relations (β = 0.03, p = .04). Conclusion. Some aspects of perceived stress management skills appear to account for specific BF dimensions and should be considered in future efforts to develop interventions to modulate BF.

WITHIN-PERSON RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MINDFULNESS AND COGNITION IS MEDIATED BY SUBJECTIVE AGE

Abstract Cognitive functioning fluctuates daily throughout adulthood. Lapses in mindfulness can have cognitive consequences, which may be impacted by how old a person feels each day. Subjective age was examined as a mediator in the within-person relationship between mindfulness and cognition. 107 younger adults (aged 18-36, M = 19.96) and 116 older adults (aged 60-90, M = 64.71) completed reports of mindfulness and subjective age and tests of inductive reasoning and episodic memory for 8 consecutive days. Within-person multilevel mediation models indicated that daily subjective age mediated the relationship between daily mindfulness lapses and both indicators of daily cognition across ages. However, the mediation effect was stronger for younger adults on inductive reasoning but was stronger for older adults on episodic memory. These results show that daily changes in subjective aging are an important mechanism for daily cognition, with differential impact based on age and cognitive component.

Exploring the Association between Neighborhood Blue Space and Self-Rated Health among Elderly Adults: Evidence from Guangzhou, China

Blue spaces is associated with self-rated health (SRH), but little is known about the pathways underlying this association among Chinese urban elderly individuals. Based on neighborhood effect theory, this study examined the relationship between neighborhood blue spaces and SRH among elderly individuals using data from a questionnaire survey conducted in Guangzhou, remote sensing images, street views, and environmental information in the context of a Chinese megacity. In addition, multilevel linear model and mediating effect model empirical analyses were performed. Results showed that first, the SRH of the elderly was associated with individual- and neighborhood-level factors. Second, the multilevel mediation model revealed that multiple biopsychosocial pathways existed between neighborhood blue spaces and the SRH of the elderly, specifically, the blue space characteristics related to the SRH of the elderly via the mediating effect of stress. Third, owing to demographic characteristics and socioeconomic status, the stratified analyses also indicated a strong association between neighborhood blue spaces and SRH outcomes in the older and low-income groups. The mediating effect of stress in the age and income groups was also observed, and the mediation pathways and group differences were confirmed in the context of Chinese cities. This research enriches the empirical literature on blue spaces and elderly health from a multidisciplinary perspective and suggests the need for "healthy neighborhood" and "health-aging" planning in Chinese settings.