Two-level Hierarchical Linear Model Research Articles

Middle school students’ mental unwellness and academic performance in China: The effects of parental involvement

This study investigated the relationship between the mental unwellness of middle school students in China and their academic performance in the subjects of Chinese, mathematics, and English. Additionally, this study explored the potential ameliorating effects of parental involvement variables (parental non-academic activity involvement and parent-child communication) on the adverse impact of mental unwellness on academic performance. The examination of the effects of parental involvement also considered the differential effects of involvement by mothers and fathers. This study utilized national longitudinal representative data from the China Education Panel Survey (CEPS). Findings of the two-level Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM) analyses indicated that mental unwellness in Grade 7 negatively impacted academic performance in the aforementioned subjects in Grade 8. Nonetheless, these adverse impacts were alleviated when the parental involvement variables were taken into account. Furthermore, the results revealed that mother-child communication and father-child communication had moderating effects on the negative relationship between mental unwellness and academic performance in Chinese and English, respectively. This study contributes to the existing literature by shedding light on the beneficial effects of parental involvement and highlighting the differential involvement of mothers and fathers.

Examining the impact of a universal social and emotional learning intervention (Passport) on internalising symptoms and other outcomes among children, compared to the usual school curriculum: study protocol for a school-based cluster randomised trial

BackgroundSchool-based universal social and emotional learning (SEL) interventions implemented during the transition to adolescence may be efficacious in preventing the development of mental health difficulties. This protocol describes a two-arm parallel cluster randomised controlled trial to investigate the impact of a universal SEL intervention (Passport, compared to usual provision) on internalising symptoms (primary outcome), emotion regulation, well-being, loneliness, social support, bullying, academic attainment, and health-related quality of life in English primary school pupils aged 9–11 years. A developer-led trial demonstrated the feasibility, acceptability, and utility of Passport; this will be the first independent trial.MethodsSixty primary schools will be recruited across the Greater Manchester city region and surrounding areas, involving 2400 pupils aged 8–9 at baseline. Schools will be allocated to the intervention arm to implement Passport over 18 weekly sessions or to the control arm to implement the usual school curriculum. Random allocation will be at school level following completion of baseline measures, with minimisation to ensure balance across trial arms in school size and free school meal eligibility. Measures will be collected at baseline, post-intervention (12 months post-baseline), and at 12 months follow-up (24 months post-baseline). The primary outcome analysis (intervention effects on internalising symptoms at post-intervention) will comprise a two-level (school, child) hierarchical linear model, following the intention-to-treat principle. Additional analyses will be undertaken to assess intervention effects on secondary outcomes, maintenance effects for all outcomes, intervention compliance moderator effects, subgroup moderator effects, and mechanisms underpinning intervention effects on the primary outcome. A mixed-methods implementation and process evaluation will examine factors that influence implementation, and a health economic evaluation will assess the cost-effectiveness of the intervention.DiscussionFindings will provide educators with crucial knowledge of whether and how increasing emotion regulation through a universal intervention impacts internalising symptoms and a range of related outcomes. Findings will also inform policy related to the promotion of mental health among children and young people. If the intervention is found to be efficacious in reducing internalising symptoms and is also cost-effective, it may offer high potential as a preventative intervention for widespread implementation.Trial registrationISRCTN12875599; registered on 24 November 2022

Time matters less: Variance partitioning of return on equity for banks in Uganda

This study investigates variations in the return on equity (ROE) and its determinants within Ugandan banks from 2010 to 2020. Using a two-level hierarchical linear model (HLM), we analyze ROE variability at both time and bank levels, considering temporal effects and the impact of specific bank-level variables on ROE. Variance decomposition reveals that the variability in ROE is more attributable to bank-specific factors than to temporal ones, signifying that individual banks’ practices have a more pronounced impact on performance than time-bound fluctuations. Our HLM results, marked by high intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) that range between 64.4% and 85.8%, underscore the dominance of bank-level variables in accounting for ROE variations. Key determinants of ROE identified by the HLM analysis include inflation, policy uncertainty, assets, equity, profits, profit margin, asset turnover, equity multipliers, and non-performing loans. A primary takeaway from our findings is the potential for operational efficiency enhancements and judicious investment decisions to produce favorable shifts in ROE. For banking managers, this highlights the necessity for ongoing process refinement and meticulous investment scrutiny. We recommend that policymakers mull over incentives for these practices, possibly through regulatory concessions or guidelines endorsing efficient operational benchmarks.

Examining the Effects of Built Environments and Individual Characteristics on Commuting Time under Spatial Heterogeneity: An Empirical Study in China Using HLM

A large number of studies have provided evidence regarding the factors that influence commuting time. However, few studies have explored such effects in the context of considering spatial heterogeneity across cities, which limits the generalizability of the findings. This study addresses this gap by utilizing a dataset of 113 cities in China across the years 2014, 2016, 2018, and 2020. A two-level hierarchical linear model (HLM) was developed to explore the combined effects of city-level and individual-level factors on commuting time by constructing a nested “city-individual” relationship. The results show that (1) built environments at the city level significantly impact commuting time; (2) a non-linear association between population density and commuting time (U-shaped relationship) was identified, as well as between the number of buses and commuting time (inverted U-shaped relationship); (3) the urban construction land area and road area per capita exert negative effects on commuting time; (4) the impacts of individuals’ jobs–housing balance, travel allowances, and education on commuting time vary across cities. These findings might contribute to optimizing the design of a built environment, addressing the challenge posed by longer commuting times, and providing a better understanding of the effects of individuals’ characteristics on commuting time while considering the inherent differences across cities.

How students' writing motivation, teachers' personal and professional attributes, and writing instruction impact student writing achievement: a two-level hierarchical linear modeling study.

Student motivation to write is a pivotal factor influencing their writing achievement. However, individual motivation to write is not independent of the learning environment. It also is crucial for teachers to develop their own efficacy, knowledge, and ability in writing and writing instruction to help them utilize effective instructional methods that stimulate students' motivation to write and further promote their writing achievement. Given these considerations, we utilized a two-level hierarchical linear model to examine the relationships among student motivation, teacher personal and professional traits, teacher writing instruction, and writing achievement at student and teacher levels. Our analysis of the dataset, which included 346 fourth and fifth graders nested within 41 classrooms, found that motivation had a positive predictive effect on writing ability at both student and teacher levels. Moreover, female students, fifth graders, and typically achieving students demonstrated higher writing achievement than their counterparts. While there were no significant effects of teacher efficacy, knowledge, ability, or professional development on student writing achievement, we observed that higher frequency of classroom management practices during writing instruction had a significant negative effect on student writing achievement. Our full model revealed that the relationship between student motivation and achievement was negatively moderated by teachers' increased use of instructional practices related to process features and using writing instruction materials, but positively moderated by increased use of varied teaching tactics. Overall, our findings emphasize the importance of contextual factors in understanding the complexity of student writing achievement and draw attention to the need for effective instructional practices to support students' writing development.

Investigation of Student and Teacher Characteristics Associated with Mathematics Achievement in the Transition to Secondary Education Exam

The purpose of this study is to examine student and teacher characteristics related to students' mathematics achievement. The study group for this research was composed of 1533 students who participated in the mathematics subtest of the transition from basic education to secondary education applied in 2016 and 36 mathematics teachers who teach these students. The data for the research are collected with the prepared student and teacher questionnaires. In the analysis of the data, two-level hierarchical linear models are used. According to the results, the most important teacher characteristic related to students' mathematics achievement is the level of professional satisfaction of the teacher. In addition, teachers' seniority, main field education, and classroom management skills have a significant and positive effect on mathematics achievement. Also, teachers' participation in professional development activities has a significant and negative effect on mathematics achievement, but this effect is small in practice. At the student level, the student's self-confidence in mathematics has the most important effect on the subject’s achievement. The variables of students' liking mathematics and their anxiety towards mathematics have negative and significant effects on mathematics achievement, but these effects are small in practice.

How (do) school experiences contribute to students’ sense of belonging?

ABSTRACT Scholars have long documented the positive influence of students’ sense of belonging on their achievement and retention; however, the variation in students’ sense of belonging has been underexplored. This paper extends previous research examining the effects of student-level characteristics (e.g., student achievement, learning attitude, experience of being bullied) and school-level characteristics (e.g., location, emphasis on academic success, disciplinary climates) on students’ sense of belonging in five East Asian educational systems (Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan). I analysed data from the 2015 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study using two-level hierarchical linear models (42,201 students in 1,241 schools). The results show that variance in students’ sense of belonging was mainly at the school level and that predictors were differently associated with sense of belonging according to system. Despite the differences, students’ learning attitudes had the strongest association with students’ sense of belonging in all educational systems included in the study, followed by their experiences with bullying. These results suggest that fostering academic belonging could be vital to increasing students’ sense of belonging, in addition to addressing their socio-psychological formation.

National intelligence and illicit trade: a cross-country study

PurposeIllicit trade is pervasive in many nations and may be influenced by the level of national IQ. The current interdisciplinary paper aims to study the association between national intelligence and illicit trade across nations.Design/methodology/approachThe illicit trade index scores for 84 countries, developed by the Economics Intelligence Unit, are used to measure the dependent variable. The independent variable is national intelligence, while economic development, unemployment and Hofstede’s cultural dimensions are the control variables. Two-level hierarchical linear models (HLMs) are used to empirically test the above-mentioned association.FindingsThe empirical results suggest that the higher the degree of national intelligence, the lower is the degree of illicit trade across nations. In addition, economic development, unemployment and national culture play an important role in explaining cross-country differences in illicit trade.Practical implicationsRegulatory authorities should find the results of this cross-national research useful in evaluating the likelihood of illicit trade from a cognitive perspective, and in implementing reforms to curb this type of economic crimes.Originality/valueThis interdisciplinary study makes novel contributions to the literature on economic and financial crimes. First, for the first time to the best of the authors’ knowledge, an association between national intelligence and illicit trade is examined. A second original contribution of this study compared to earlier research is related to the use of two-level HLMs. Third, the investigation of the association between intelligence and illicit trade takes a new control variable into consideration, i.e. unemployment, a variable which is found to have a significant effect on illicit trade and that has not been used directly in relationship with illicit trade so far.

Self-regulated learning strategies and academic achievement in South Korean 6th-graders: A two-level hierarchical linear modeling analysis.

The aim of the study was to explain the relationships between self-regulated learning strategy use and academic achievement of 6th-grade students in South Korea. An existing database (i.e., the Korean Educational Longitudinal Study; KELS) with 6th-grade students (n = 7,065) from 446 schools was used to run a series of 2-level hierarchical linear models (HLM). This large dataset enabled us to consider how the relationship between learners' self-regulated learning strategy use and academic achievement may differ at individual and school levels. We found that students' metacognition and effort regulation positively predicted their literacy and math achievement both within and across schools. The average literacy and math achievement were significantly higher in private schools than in public schools. Also, the math achievement of urban schools was significantly higher than in non-urban schools when controlling other cognitive and behavioral learning strategies. This study on 6th-grade learners' self-regulated learning (SRL) on academic achievement explores how their SRL strategies may be different from the features of successful adult learners from the previous findings, offering new insights into the development of SRL in elementary education.

Does proactively asking about allergens before ordering improve customer outcomes? An in-business randomised controlled trial.

Does proactively asking about allergens before ordering improve customer outcomes? An in-business randomised controlled trial.

An Investigation of Variables Predicting the Reading Literacy in Pisa 2018

This study aims to determine variables predicting students’ reading literacy in the PISA application. Turkey’s PISA 2018 sample data that consisted of 186 schools and 6890, representing 12 regions from Turkey were analyzed by conducting a two-level hierarchical linear modeling to examine students’ reading literacy at the student and school levels. The results indicated that, according to the student-level predictors, female students had higher reading literacy and the reading literacy was positively influenced by an increase in predictors of father’s education level, predictors showing metacognition levels, socioeconomic levels, parents’ emotional support to the students, reading pleasure levels, and reading attitudes. Considering the school-level predictors, deficiencies in educational materials and student behaviors hindering learning reduced achievement, whereas teacher behaviors hindering learning had a positive effect on achievement. Offering extracurricular creative activities in the school environment reduced the negative impact of the educational status of the mother to a certain extent. The sub-dimension of the metacognitive level assessment had an increased impact on reading literacy, but student behaviors hindering learning had a negative effect on it. Considering the findings, the reasons for the low level of reading literacy of students and how it can be increased were discussed.

An Analysis of the Relationship between Primary School Fourth-Grade Students’ Writing Performance, and Student and Class Variables

This study aims to examine the writing performance of primary school fourth-grade students in relation to the student-level variables (writing, reading comprehension, self-regulation-based writing, writing motivation, and writing anxiety) and classroom-level (teacher) variables (knowledge of text-writing instruction and text-writing instruction self-efficacy beliefs). The data were collected from Zonguldak, Turkey in 2019-2020 academic year. The study used a correlation research method consisting of 734 fourth-grade students at primary school and 31 classroom teachers. The data collection tools included the Story Text and Informative Text Assessment Analytical Rubric, Writing Achievement Test, Reading Comprehension Test, Self-Regulation-Based Writing Scale, Writing Motivation Scale, Writing Anxiety Scale, and Text-Writing Instruction Form for Classroom Teachers, and Text-Writing Instruction Self-Efficacy Beliefs Scale. A two-level Hierarchical Linear Modelling (HLM) analysis was performed on the data. The results showed that students’ writing knowledge, reading comprehension level, and self-regulation-based writing skills play a significant role in their writing performance. The student-level variables examined in this study account for the text-writing performance of students by 24%. The study presents the results based on the findings and recommendations based on the results.

How Does Collective Moral Judgment Induce Unethical Pro-Organizational Behaviors in Infrastructure Construction Projects: The Mediating Role of Machiavellianism.

The sustainable development of infrastructure construction projects heavily depends on favorable cooperation of all parties and ethical code of conduct, while Un-ethical pro-organizational behavior (UPB) may undermine the mutual efforts and cause serious consequences. UPB has aroused wide interest of researchers, but what may trigger construction employees to engage in UPB at team-level has not been elucidated completely. With information asymmetry and huge uncertainty, the behaviors of employees in temporary project teams are marked by environmental and personal characters. The study discusses the influences of collective moral judgement focus on self (CMJS) and Machiavellianism on UPB. Through a moderated mediation analysis conducted on a set of survey data from Chinese construction projects, the empirical results of the two-level hierarchical linear model indicate that CMJS positively impacts UPB directly, and meanwhile Machiavellianism acts as a partial mediator in the relationship between CMJS and UPB. The findings also reveal that performance-avoidance goal orientation (PAGO) and motivation to learn (MTL) moderate and strengthen the relationship between Machiavellianism and UPB. The study offers practical suggestions for both project managers and policymakers of construction projects.

The Benefits of Wise Organizations for Employee Well-Being

Similar to personal wisdom, which is believed to be beneficial for individuals, others, and the larger community, wise organizations are likely to have a positive impact on employee well-being if their ultimate goal is to promote the common good. To test this hypothesis and create a wise organization index, the cognitive, reflective, and compassionate dimensions of the Three-Dimensional Wisdom Model were integrated with the psychological needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness of Self-Determination Theory. The wise organization index consisted of the average ratings of ten scales by forty-seven to 1,930 employees in twenty-four organizations. Analyses of two-level hierarchical linear models showed that the positive association between the wisdom scores of twenty-four organizations and the well-being scores of 9130 employees was mediated by supervisor support and job fulfillment. The study suggests that employees who are treated well, feel well and fulfilled at work, which likely benefits the organization’s long-term success.

Skills-based approach and learning outcomes' determinants in West Africa

This paper analyses skills-based approach implementation effect on learning outcomes in West Africa. Its expansion was made under multiple goals, including skills improvements, which are related to innovation and productivity in economic literature. However, few works have been devoted to its effect evaluation on pupils' outcomes at primary education level. Moreover, the economic analysis has little to say about its contribution to learning quality. To achieve this goal, we estimate a two-level hierarchical linear model where endogeneity bias is corrected by Mundlak estimator adaptation to multilevel data. Our results show the skills-based approach negative impact on achievements, but also, learning disparities related to pupil gender, school location and type, while some institutional factor and family background positively influence student's outcomes.

Childhood Bullying Victimization, Substance Use and Criminal Activity among Adolescents: A Multilevel Growth Model Study

This study aims to examine the effects of childhood bullying victimization (CBV) on substance use and criminal activity among adolescents over time. In addition, it identifies the moderating effects of gender and race/ethnicity on the associations of CBV with substance abuse and criminal activity in adolescence and young adulthood. This study included 8984 adolescents aged 12 to 18 years (Mage = 14.22 years) assessed biennially at four time points utilizing the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997. The two-level hierarchical linear modeling was employed to test the effects of CBV on substance use and criminal activity. The incidence of substance use increased over time throughout adolescence to young adulthood, while that of criminal activity decreased. CBV increased the risks of cigarette use, marijuana use, and criminal activity. Gender and race/ethnicity significantly moderated the effect of CBV on alcohol use and alcohol binges. The effect of CBV on alcohol use was stronger among females than males. Among Hispanic adolescents, CBV was more strongly related to alcohol use and binges compared to non-Hispanic White. Findings suggest the need for early intervention for children at high risk of being bullied to reduce later substance abuse and involvement in criminal activities. Considering the moderating effects of gender and ethnicity on the associations, target-specified intervention and prevention programs are also required. Further studies focusing on the lifelong effects of CBV beyond adolescence are recommended.

Global Pain and Aging: A Cross-Sectional Study on Age Differences in the Intensity of Chronic Pain Among Middle-Aged and Older Adults in 20 Countries.

This study aims to examine age differences in the intensity of chronic pain among middle-aged and older adults, where intensity is measured on a scale differentiating between chronic pain that is often troubling and likely requires intervention versus more endurable sensations. We aim to explore whether individual health and national gross domestic product (GDP) explain these differences as well. Cross-nationally harmonized data from 20 countries on self-reported intensity of chronic pain (0 = no, 1 = mild, 2 = moderate, 3 = severe) in 104,826 individuals aged 50+ observed in 2012-2013. Two-level hierarchical ordinal linear models with individuals nested within countries were used to isolate estimations from heterogeneity explained by methodological differences across single-country studies. Overall, mean participant age was 66.9 (SD = 9.9), 56.1% were women, and 41.9% of respondents reported any chronic pain. Chronic pain intensity rose sharply with age in some countries (e.g., Korea and Slovenia), but this association waned or reversed in other countries (e.g., the United States and Denmark). Cross-country variation and age differences in chronic pain were partly explained (85.5% and 35.8%, respectively) by individual-level health (especially arthritis), country-level wealth (as indicated by GDP per capita), and demographics. Chronic pain intensity is not an inevitable consequence of chronological age, but the consequence of potential selection effects and lower activity levels combined with individual-level health and country-level wealth. Our findings suggest further investigation of health conditions and country affluence settings as potential targets of medical and policy interventions aiming to prevent, reduce, or manage chronic pain among older patients and aging populations.

The determinants of the quality of primary education in Cameroon

This paper investigates the determinants of school acquisition at the end of primary school in Cameroon. To do so, we use a two-level hierarchical linear modeling on data from the 2014 survey of the “Programme d'Analyse des Systèmes Éducatifs” of CONFEMEN (PASEC). We found that the socio-economic level of the student's families, the language spoken at home, the size of the school, the gender of the teachers, and the legal nature of the school explain significantly and positively the level of students' academic achievements. Recommendations for households and education stakeholders to improve the quality of primary education are discussed.

The Role of Staff-Assessed Care Quality in the Relationship between Job Demands and Stress in Human Service Work: The Example of Dentistry.

The aim of this study was to investigate staff-assessed care quality at the clinic as a predictor of stress and as a moderator between job demands (quantitative demands and role conflict) and stress among dental professionals as an example of human service workers. Cross-sectional questionnaire data from 1012 dental professionals (i.e., dentists, dental hygienists and dental nurses) working at 99 clinics were analysed by confirmatory factor analysis and a two-level hierarchical linear model. Stress, quantitative demands and role conflict were measured by the Swedish standard version of COPSOQ III and care quality was measured by three proprietary items. The results showed that staff-assessed care quality at the clinic was of importance for the individual workers’ experiences of stress. Furthermore, the staff’s joint assessment of the care quality at the clinic mitigated the negative effect of role conflict on stress among dental nurses. These results indicate that a high level of staff-assessed care quality at the clinic can contribute to reduced stress in dental professionals.

Sense of School Belonging: The Illusion of a School-Size Effect

Over the past thirty years, the sense of school belonging received increasing attention in the educational field because of the many developmental and educational advantages associated with it. Previous research suggested that small schools are in a better position to create a strong sense of belonging among students. The aim of our study was to test the effect of school size on students’ sense of school belonging and to test whether this effect holds after considering the effect of the classroom after controlling for individual differences. The study was conducted on a sample of 1698 sixth- and seventh-grade students distributed among 20 school institutes in Switzerland. Multilevel analyses have been conducted. While first results showed an effect of the school size on the sense of school belonging, a comparison of the two-level and three-level hierarchical linear models showed that this effect is no longer significant when considering the intermediate level of the classroom in the analysis, indicating that previous research may have overestimated the effect of school size on the sense of school belonging. These evidence raises the question of which levels of the school environment are more relevant to better understanding individual differences in the sense of school belonging.