Multilevel Mediation Research Articles

Abstract A012: Differences in attention, processing speed, and executive function in older breast cancer survivors compared to controls is partially explained by plasma IL-6: The Thinking and Living with Cancer (TLC) Study

Abstract Purpose: Cancer-related cognitive problems may result from peripheral inflammation effects on the brain. We tested whether differences in cognitive performance between breast cancer survivors and non-cancer controls was explained by elevated inflammatory cytokines. Methods: We enrolled women >60 years, newly diagnosed with primary breast cancer (stage 0-III) (n=400) and frequency-matched non-cancer controls (n=329) from six national centers from 2010- 2020, with blood collection beginning in 2016. Baseline assessments occurred pre-systemic therapy (or enrollment for controls) with annual follow-up to 60-months. The primary outcome was the score on neurocognitive tests of the attention, processing speed and executive function (APE) domain. Plasma levels of IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-alpha were determined using multiplex testing and mixed linear models compared results for each marker across all timepoints by survivor/control group, adjusting for age, race, WRAT scores, recruitment site, comorbidities, and BMI. Multi-level mediation analyses tested the simultaneous direct effects of survivor/control group on cognition and indirect effects of group on each immune marker and the effect of the marker on cognition, controlling for covariates. Results: Participants had an average age of 67.7 years (range: 60-90). Most survivors had stage I (60.9%) estrogen-receptor positive (87.6%) tumors. Survivors had significantly higher adjusted IL-6 levels than controls at baseline, 12-, 24- and 60-months (p=< 0.001 to 0.014), but there were no differences for other markers. Survivors had lower adjusted APE scores than controls, and this effect was due to the indirect effects of being a survivor vs. control on IL-6 (p=0.047). Conclusion: Cancer and its treatments were related to poorer attention, processing speed, and executive function compared to non-cancer frequency matched controls, and this difference was partially explained by elevated IL-6. Citation Format: Jeanne S. Mandelblatt, Brent J. Small, Xingtao Zhou, Zev M. Nakamura, Harvey J. Cohen, Tim A. Ahles, Jaeil Ahn, Traci N. Bethea, Martine Extermann, Heather S.L. Jim, Brenna C. McDonald, Sunita K. Patel, Kelly Rentscher, James Root, Andrew J. Saykin, Kathleen Van Dyk, Wanting Zhai, Elizabeth C. Breen, Judith E. Carroll. Differences in attention, processing speed, and executive function in older breast cancer survivors compared to controls is partially explained by plasma IL-6: The Thinking and Living with Cancer (TLC) Study [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference: Aging and Cancer; 2022 Nov 17-20; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;83(2 Suppl_1):Abstract nr A012.

Relationship Between Student-Perceived Reading Strategy Instruction and Students’ Reading Comprehension: A Serial Multiple Mediation Model

Based on the model of reading engagement processes within classroom contexts, this research examined the link between student-perceived reading strategy instruction (RSI) and reading comprehension via multiple mediators, including autonomous reading motivation and reading strategy use (RSU), among 5,275 Chinese fourth graders. Multilevel mediation analysis showed that the direct effect of student-perceived RSI on reading comprehension was not significant at the school level but was significant at the student level. Additionally, the indirect effect of student-perceived RSI on reading comprehension through (first) autonomous reading motivation and (second) RSU was significant at both the student and school levels. The results indicate that student-perceived RSI exerts beneficial effects on student reading learning by fostering autonomous reading motivation and RSU. These findings provide pedagogical implications for directions in future reading instruction.

FOCUS ON PRESENT MOMENT FOR YOUR SLEEP: MINDFULNESS PROMOTES MID-LIFE ADULTS' SLEEP HEALTH

Abstract Sleep health during midlife sets the stage for health over the lifespan. Mindfulness, or present-moment awareness and attention, is shown to benefit sleep, yet mechanisms explaining these benefits are missing. Applying self-regulation theory, we test affective and cognitivemechanisms linking mindfulness to quantitative and qualitative sleep health. Across two independent samples of nurses (N1=60; N2=84), ecological momentary assessment (measuring mindfulness, sleep quality and sufficiency, positive and negative affect, and rumination) and actigraphy (sleep duration and wake-after-sleep-onset [WASO]) were collected over fourteen days. Multilevel mediation revealed that, between people, mindfulness generally associated with better sleep quality and sufficiency, mediated by lower rumination and negative affect. Within people, daily mindfulness associated with better sleep sufficiency, mediated by higher positive affect. Our findings position mindfulness as an emotional and cognitive self-regulation strategy that promotes midlife adults’ qualitative – but not quantitative -- sleep health. Results may inform health interventions during this pivotal life stage.

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.

EFFECTS OF TRANSMISSIONS OF OLDER MOTHERS’ INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIP QUALITY ON ADULT CHILDREN’S WELL-BEING

Abstract Prior research has rarely considered how the effects of social relationships on well-being can extend across generations. Drawing from the life-course perspective, we tested intergenerational transmission of relationship quality (with mothers and friends) as a mechanism through which mothers’ relationship quality affects adult children’s psychological well-being. We proposed that adult children bear the consequence of mothers’ relationship quality because they tend to develop interpersonal relationships similar to their mothers’ through socialization and observational learning, which in turn affects their psychological well-being. We investigated how this mechanism varied by adult children’s gender using mixed-method data collected from 693 adult children in 270 families as part of the Within-Family Difference Study. Multilevel mediation analyses revealed that transmission of mother-child closeness and tension affected adult sons’ but not daughters’ depressive symptoms. In contrast, transmission of friendship closeness decreased daughters’ but not sons’ depressive symptoms. Mother’s friendship tension affected both sons’ and daughters’ depressive symptoms, but the mechanisms differed by gender. Sons’ depressive symptoms were affected by intergenerational transmission of friendship tension. In contrast, intergenerational transmission was not the mechanism via which mothers’ friendship tension raised daughters’ depressive symptoms. Qualitative analyses revealed daughters’ well-being was affected by more diverse pathways besides intergenerational transmission of relationship quality and that these differences could be explained by gender socialization and differing meanings of social relationships for sons and daughters. These findings highlight the role of parental socialization in the mechanisms by which linked lives affect adult children’s well-being, even decades after these processes were set into motion.

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.

Relationship between Unit-Level Nurses' Expectations from Nursing Assistant Roles and Individual Nursing Assistants’ Information-Sharing Behaviors: A Multilevel Mediation Analysis

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the expectations of unit-level nurses from nursing assistants (NAs), frequency of individual NAs' information-sharing behaviors with nurses, and the effect of NAs' self-perceived roles on this relationship. NAs provide patient care along with nurses, and their information-sharing behaviors with nurses may be influenced by the expectations of the nurses. Nurses and NAs from 104 integrated community care (sub- and postacute) units were included in this Japanese cross-sectional study conducted from July to September 2018. Nurses' expectations from NAs and the NAs' self-perceived roles and information-sharing frequency were measured. Multilevel mediation analysis was performed for NAs' information-sharing behaviors, such as expressing, asking, providing linguistic responses, and providing feedback. Unit-level nurses' expectations from NAs were associated with the frequency of NAs' asking and responding behaviors with nurses (p<.05), mediated by the NAs' self-perceived roles. The frequency of NAs' expressing behaviors and feedback were also associated with their self-perceived roles (p<.001). High expectations of unit-level nurses from NAs led to better perception by NAs of their roles and led to better information-sharing behaviors. Educating nurses on NAs' roles may improve information-sharing between nurses and NAs that leads to safe and appropriate care to patients.

Teachers’ Frequency of ICT Use in Providing Sustainable Opportunity to Learn: Mediation Analysis Using a Reading Database

As classrooms have become increasingly digitized, information and communication technology (ICT) has been frequently used by teachers. On that basis, whether teachers’ ICT use could provide students with more and sustainable opportunities to learn (OTL) has aroused more attention in the relevant research field. However, there has been scarce evidence for teacher-related factors that elucidate the correlation between the ICT use of teachers and providing OTL in secondary education. Given this inefficiency of evidence, this study aimed to investigate the above correlation and explore the mediation effects of teachers’ self-efficacy and teachers’ flexible strategy use to solve individualized challenges (i.e., adaptive instruction). The data of 10,796 teachers in 389 secondary schools were analyzed using R based on a multilevel mediation model. As indicated by the results of this study, teachers achieved higher self-efficacy and adaptive instruction levels when ICT was used more frequently in reading classrooms, which would further enhance the provision of OTL for students. In addition, experienced teachers were better at facilitating adaptive instruction and self-efficacy using ICT. The above results could lay a solid foundation for future empirical studies to incorporate ICT in reading course design. Furthermore, it is imperative to carry out teacher training programs to improve teachers’ beliefs and practices in providing OTL for better sustainable education in ICT education contexts.

Culture, value commitments, and supervisors’ ethics: Exploring a multilevel mediation model

Significant research provides evidence of social and individual factors that influence ethics. However, consideration of the cultural assimilation process that simultaneously emphasizes the roles of national-level and individual-level values is scarce. Building on the arguments of Merton's anomie theory (1938, 1968), this study considered a multilevel mediation model to investigate the direct effects of cultural values on supervisors' ethics as well as the indirect effects through value commitments. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was employed to perform a centered within context with the reintroduction of the subtracted means at Level-2 (CWC(M)) mediation analysis on the data of 9813 supervisors across 30 countries. The study's findings contribute to Merton's anomie theory by deliberating on the importance of the assimilation of society's cultural values as reflected by individual value commitments in shaping supervisors' ethicality. Considering that some results opposed the propositions of Merton's anomie theory, this paper offered arguments that complement them.

Understanding the interplay between targeted motivation interventions and motivational teaching practices in mathematics classrooms

Prior research has shown that brief motivation interventions, such as interventions targeting students’ perceptions concerning relevance of the learning material, can have long-lasting effects on students’ motivation and performance. However, the educational contexts in which these interventions have been implemented have their own motivational affordances, such as the extent to which teachers support students’ perceptions of relevance in regular classes. According to the seed-and-soil hypothesis for the effectiveness of psychological interventions, such interventions can be seen like a “seed” that needs to be implemented in a supportive educational context (i.e., the “soil”) in order to work. Therefore, in this study we examined the interplay between a one-time relevance intervention implemented in mathematics classrooms and the mathematics teacher’s relevance support as perceived by the students before and after the intervention. Data stemmed from a cluster-randomized controlled trial with 79 ninth-grade mathematics classes (N = 1744 students) in which the intervention was implemented by the mathematics teacher or a master’s student, both trained for this purpose. Multilevel moderation models showed that both intervention conditions had larger effects when students perceived higher relevance support before or after the intervention, thus providing support for the seed-and-soil hypothesis. Furthermore, multilevel mediation models indicated a positive effect of the teacher condition on perceived relevance support at posttest compared with the control condition, which partly explained the positive effect of this intervention condition on utility value at follow-up. The results shed light on the contexts in which these interventions are most effective and the mechanisms through which they work.

Is it worth being attached to the leader? Transformational leadership and various types of performance: The mediating role of leader as attachment figure

We assumed that the perception of the leader as an attachment figure would mediate the relationship between transformational leadership transformational leadership and leader/follower's reports of team performance. Leaders (N = 38) and employees (N = 204) completed separate questionnaire batteries. Team members assessed their perceptions of the leader as an attachment figure, transformational leadership of their leaders, and general and citizenship performance. Leaders assessed their transformational leadership style and the performance of their teams. We applied multi-level structural equation modeling (multi-level mediation). Perceptions of the leader as an attachment figure did not significantly mediate team or general performance prediction. But, the transformational leadership of the leader (team level) positively predicted the dimensions of the attachment figure (secure figure and separation distress – individual level). The secure figure positively and separation distress negatively predicted interpersonal and organizational citizenship performance at the team level. The perception of a leader as an attachment figure at the team level has different characteristics than at the individual level. The results indicate that the best scenario for team performance, as seen through the lens of transformational leadership, is a secure-figure leader and followers with low separation distress. The discussion meets the topics of the low statistical power and the need to differentiate a leader's attachment figure functions in organizations regarding the individual versus team level.

A multilevel analysis of the relationship between leaders’ experiential avoidance and followers’ well-being

Experiential avoidance is defined as a process involving excessive negative evaluations of difficult or unwanted feelings, thoughts, and sensations, an unwillingness to remain in contact with and express these experiences, and habitual attempts to avoid or control them. Experiential avoidance is closely associated with maladaptive functioning. Although the ability to connect with internal experiences has been considered an important element of effective leadership, this assumption has not yet been empirically tested. On the basis of the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy model of experiential avoidance and the propositions of leadership models (e.g., transformational and authentic leadership) that characterize leadership as an emotion-related process, we examined the relationship between leaders’ experiential avoidance and their followers’ well-being in a sample of leader-follower triads. Well-being outcomes were subjective happiness, purpose in life, and job satisfaction. We also tested the mediating roles of followers’ basic psychological need satisfaction and need frustration in this relationship. Multilevel mediation model analyses suggested that followers’ psychological need frustration but not need satisfaction mediated the relationship between leaders’ experiential avoidance and followers’ well-being outcomes. Thus, a rigid attitude toward one’s internal experiences as a leader is a risk factor for followers’ well-being because leaders with such attitudes may pay little attention to their followers and give rise to need frustration in their followers. Organizational efforts to increase leaders’ flexibility in dealing with negative experiences can help foster well-being among both leaders and their followers.

Impact of Industrial Intelligence on Total Factor Productivity

Industrial intelligence is gaining more prominence in the new era of the technical revolution. This paper conducts an empirical test based on the panel data of 30 Chinese provinces (municipalities and autonomous regions) from 2006 to 2017. Firstly, the stochastic frontier analysis developed from the transcendental logarithmic production function is applied to calculate the total factor productivity of 30 provinces in China. The fluctuation of the total factor productivity is employed to reflect the quality of economic development. Secondly, the multilevel mediation model is applied to conduct the empirical test. Then, the robustness and endogeny of the conclusions are tested, and a further discussion is finally made, respectively, for eastern, central and western China. The results show that: (1) Industrial intelligence has a promoting effect on the improvement of total factor productivity. (2) Industrial intelligence can increase the demand for highly skilled labor and reduce the demand for low-skilled labor, but it has no significant impact on the demand for medium-skilled labor. (3) Industrial intelligence influences the improvement of total factor productivity through labor force structure.

Does parental smartphone use predict parents’ perceptions of family life? An examination of momentary associations between parental smartphone use, parental experiences of quality time, and parental perceptions of difficult child behavior

This article reports the findings of a multi-method study that explored whether frequency and duration of parental smartphone use in the presence of children is associated with parents’ perceptions of quality time and child restlessness, an indicator of difficult child behavior. Additionally, the study explored whether parental perceptions of technoference, respectively time displacement, mediate the association between smartphone use measures - respectively frequency and duration of use - and the outcome measures. We collected experience sampling and smartphone log data among parents of children aged between 4 and 10 years to assess momentary between- and within-person-level associations between the frequency and duration of co-present parental smartphone use and parents’ perceptions of quality time, their child's restlessness, technoference, and time displacement. We gathered 1484 observations from 56 participants. Multilevel mediation analysis revealed no between-person associations between our two measures of parental smartphone use and the outcome measures. At the within-person level, no associations were found with child restlessness. However, smartphone frequency did predict perceptions of greater technoference, and smartphone duration predicted time displacement. Technoference in turn negatively predicted parental experiences, although the hypothesized mediation did not reach statistical significance. Time displacement predicted parental experiences of quality time in the opposite direction of what was hypothesized. Some heterogeneity was found in the observed within-person associations, suggesting that there is person-specificity. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of our findings.

Within-person changes in religiosity, control beliefs, and subjective well-being across middle and late adulthood.

Given the well-established link between control beliefs and well-being, researchers have turned their attention to characterizing mechanisms that help foster this relationship across the second half of life. Cross-sectional, empirical work has identified a mediating relationship among religiosity and spirituality (R/S), control beliefs, and subjective well-being, such that individuals with higher R/S show higher subjective well-being that is mediated by between-person differences in perceived control. Empirical tests of between-person differences, however, may not represent within-person associations. As such, the present study utilized longitudinal data from the Notre Dame Study of Health & Well-being (NDHWB; N = 1,017) to examine concurrent, within-person associations among three R/S dimensions (i.e., religious coping, religious practices, and spirituality), control beliefs, and subjective well-being. Results from our Bayesian multilevel mediation analyses showed significant within-person associations among these constructs, suggesting potential bidirectionality and circularity in these processes. Cross-sectional age differences and time significantly moderated these associations. In terms of age differences, younger, compared to older, individuals showed stronger positive associations among religious coping and spirituality, control beliefs, and subjective well-being and more negative associations among religious practices, control beliefs, and subjective well-being. Contrarily, the effect of time implied that the relationships among religious coping and spirituality, control beliefs, and subjective well-being became more positive across time. Given this disjunction and that the moderating effect of cross-sectional age by time was not significant, cross-sectional age differences in these relationships likely reflect generational differences in the associations among R/S, control beliefs, and subjective well-being. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

The Impact of Caregiver Depression on Child Asthma Outcomes: Pathways and Mechanisms

Depression is common in caregivers of children with asthma and is associated with poor outcomes in their child. No prior studies have longitudinally examined caregiver depression remission as a predictor of improvement in child asthma control. This 2-site study examined whether the proportion of time a caregiver was in depression remission predicted subsequent child asthma control at exit. Caregivers (n= 205) with current major depressive disorder and their children, ages 7 to 17, with persistent asthma were observed every 4 weeks for 52 weeks. Caregiver depressive symptoms were measured using the 17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD). Child asthma was assessed with the (Childhood) Asthma Control Test (cACT/ACT) and spirometry, and depression with the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI). Linear regression analyses were conducted with change in cACT/ACT, CDI, and forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1)% predicted as outcomes and proportion of time the caregiver was in remission (HRSD score ≤ 7) as the predictor. Multilevel mediation analyses examined the role of child depressive symptoms and asthma controller medication adherence. Children were, on average, 54.1% female and 11 years old. Caregiver proportion of time in HRSD-assessed remission of depression was a significant predictor of improvement in cACT/ACT, CDI, and FEV1% predicted. Child CDI score, but not medication adherence, mediated the relationship between caregiver HRSD scores and child asthma control scores. Improvement in caregiver depression positively influences child asthma outcomes partially through improvement in child depressive symptom severity. Caregiver depression screening and treatment might lead to improvement in child asthma outcomes.

Mediators of measurement-based care implementation in community mental health settings: results from a mixed-methods evaluation

BackgroundTailored implementation approaches are touted as superior to standardized ones with the reasoning that tailored approaches afford opportunities to select strategies to resolve determinants of the local context. However, results from implementation trials on this topic are equivocal. Therefore, it is important to explore relevant contextual factors that function as determinants to evaluate if they are improved by tailoring and subsequently associated with changes in implementation outcomes (i.e., via statistical mediation) to better understand how tailoring achieves (or does not achieve) its effects. The present study examined the association between a tailored and standardized implementation approach, contextual factors that might mediate change, and a target implementation outcome in an initiative to implement measurement-based care (specifically the clinical integration of the Patient Health Questionnaire [PHQ-9] for depression) in a community mental health organization.MethodsUsing a cluster randomized control design, twelve community-based mental health clinics were assigned to a tailored or standardized implementation group. Clinicians completed a self-report battery assessing contextual factors that served as candidate mediators informed by the Framework for Dissemination at three time points: baseline, 5 months after active implementation support, and 10 months after sustainment monitoring. A subset of clinicians also participated in focus groups at 5 months. The routine use of the PHQ-9 (implementation outcome) was monitored during the 10-month sustainment period. Multi-level mediation analyses assessed the association between the implementation group and contextual factors and the association between contextual factors and PHQ-9 completion. Quantitative results were then elaborated by analyzing qualitative data from exemplar sites.ResultsAlthough tailored clinics outperformed standard clinics in terms of PHQ-9 completion at the end of active implementation, these group differences disappeared post sustainment monitoring. Perhaps related to this, no significant mediators emerged from our quantitative analyses. Exploratory qualitative analyses of focus group content emphasized the importance of support from colleagues, supervisors, and leadership when implementing clinical innovations in practice.ConclusionsAlthough rates of PHQ-9 completion improved across the study, their sustained levels were roughly equivalent across groups and low overall. No mediators were established using quantitative methods; however, several partial quantitative pathways, as well as themes from the qualitative data, reveal fruitful areas for future research.Trial registrationStandardizedversus tailored implementation of measurement-based care for depression. ClinicalTrials.govNCT02266134, first posted on October16, 2014

Generation Z software employees turnover intention.

This study applied the social exchange and social identity theories to investigate the association among resonant leadership, self-efficacy, organizational identification, work performance, and turnover intentions in Generation-Z (Gen-Z) software professionals. The study sampled 73 leader-subordinate dyads from 10 large-scale software companies in India through an online survey. Hierarchical linear modeling, including multilevel mediation, was conducted to test the proposed model. The results of this study revealed the cross-level effect of resonant leadership on the work-related outcomes among the Gen-Z software operators based on two psychological mediators, namely, self-efficacy and organizational identification. It suggests that resonant leadership could be the potential driver to manage the predominant psychological factors of the incoming cohort group of Gen-Z software professionals, which yield positive work outcomes. Based on the empirical evidence, the software companies can devise suitable intervention mechanisms to enhance productivity and reduce turnover intentions of the Gen-Z cohort. Thus, this study is a novel attempt to establish a comprehensive theoretical framework that provides a broad scope for future research to investigate the mechanisms which manage the expectations of Gen-Z cohorts.

Multilevel mediation analysis with structured unmeasured mediator-outcome confounding

Mediation analysis usually requires the assumption that there is no unmeasured mediator-outcome confounder. However, this may not hold in many social and scientific studies. Though various parametric and nonparametric mediation methods have been developed, this assumption remains instrumental, without which the causal effects are not identifiable unless alternative assumptions are imposed. To circumvent this, a multilevel parametric structural equation modeling framework is proposed to relax this no unmeasured mediator-outcome confounding assumption under a specific data setting inspired by a real experiment. Using the proposed framework, it is shown that the causal effects are identifiable and consistently estimated. Likelihood-based approaches are proposed with efficient optimization algorithms to estimate the parameters, including the unmeasured confounding effect, instead of performing sensitivity analysis. The asymptotic consistency is established. Using extensive simulations and a functional magnetic resonance imaging dataset, the improvement of the approaches over existing methods is demonstrated. The R package macc for implementation is available on CRAN.

Minority dissent, social acceptance and conflict transformation in multiparty systems

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the role of minority dissent (MD) as an antecedent for task (TC) and relationship conflict (RC) in groups engaged in multiparty collaboration. The authors hypothesized that MD triggers both TC and RC and that the association between MD and RC is mediated by TC. Moreover, the authors hypothesized that the positive association between MD and RC is attenuated by social acceptance, while the positive association between TC and RC is attenuated by trust.Design/methodology/approachThe authors have tested the hypotheses in 36 groups comprising in total 145 professionals that attended a two-day workshop on working across organizational boundaries and who filled in three surveys during a multiparty simulation. The authors used multilevel mediation analyses to test the hypotheses.FindingsThe results generally supported the role of MD as an antecedent for both TC and RC as well as the mediating role of TC in the relationship between MD and RC. The attenuating role of social acceptance in the relationship between MD and RC was fully supported, while the attenuating role of trust in the relationship between TC and RC was not supported.Research limitations/implicationsThis study is based on a rather small sample and used a cross-lagged data collection design, and no causal claims can be derived from the findings. Behavioral multiparty simulations create a realistic context in which the authors investigate the dynamics of conflict transformation and explore the interplay of MD, TC and RC.Social implicationsAs nowadays, multiparty systems are engaged in dealing with important societal challenges and because RC is detrimental for collaborative effectiveness, the results have important implications for facilitating effective collaboration in such complex systems.Originality/valueThis study makes an important contribution to the literature on conflict in multiparty systems by showing that as an antecedent of intragroup conflict, MD can have both a beneficial as well as a detrimental impact on the conflict dynamics of multiparty systems. It points out the importance of social acceptance as a buffer against the detrimental role of MD.