In multilevel modeling, group-level variables (L2) for assessing contextual effects are frequently generated by aggregating variables from a lower level (L1). A major problem of contextual analyses in the social sciences is that there is no error-free measurement of constructs. In the present article, 2 types of error occurring in multilevel data…

Recently graduated university students from all Australian Universities rate their overall departmental and university experiences (DUEs), and their responses (N = 44,932, 41 institutions) are used by the government to benchmark departments and universities. We evaluate this DUE strategy of rating overall departments and universities rather than…

Little, Bovaird and Widaman (2006) proposed an unconstrained approach with residual centering for estimating latent interaction effects as an alternative to the mean-centered approach proposed by Marsh, Wen, and Hau (2004, 2006). Little et al. also differed from Marsh et al. in the number of indicators used to infer the latent interaction factor…

As emphasized in the call for papers by Jonna Kulikowich and Gregory Hancock, the primary goal of this special issue of "Contemporary Educational Psychology" is to assemble a collection of illustrative empirical studies in educational psychology that utilize one or more state-of-the-art latent variable modeling procedures. Distinguishing these…

Existing research posits multiple dimensions of bullying and victimization but has not identified well-differentiated facets of these constructs that meet standards of good measurement: goodness of fit, measurement invariance, lack of differential item functioning, and well-differentiated factors that are not so highly correlated as to detract…

In this investigation, we used a classic latent profile analysis (LPA), a person-centered approach, to identify groups of students who had similar profiles for multiple dimensions of academic self-concept (ASC) and related these LPA groups to a diverse set of correlates. Consistent with a priori predictions, we identified 5 LPA groups representing…

Approaches to the evaluation of multitrait-multimethod data in which there are multiple indicators of each trait-method combination are explored. A first-order factor defined by multiple indicators is posited for each trait-method combination, and method and trait factors are posited as second-order factors. (SLD)

Evaluated external assessor ratings of the quality of the research team and the proposed research for proposals submitted to the Australian Research Council large grants program. Data from 313 evaluations show that the reliability of the assessments varied systematically with the number of assessors and the score considered. Discusses implication…

Traditional reviews and previous meta-analyses of self-concept interventions have underestimated effect sizes by using an implicitly unidimensional perspective that emphasizes global self-concept. In contrast, this research employed a synergistic blend of meta-analysis and multidimensional construct validation to evaluate the impact of…

Self-concept scales from the Australian Self Description Questionnaire II (SDQII) were included in the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88). Mean differences based on 17,544 U.S. responses and the Australian normative sample were small. Results support construct validity of SDQII responses in NELS:88 data. (SLD)

This paper describes a variety of confirmatory factor analysis models that provide improved tests of multitrait-multimethod matrices, and compares three different approaches (the original Campbell-Fiske guidelines, an analysis of variance model, and confirmatory factor analysis models). (PN)

Agreement between two independent reviews of each of 278 manuscripts was compared on an overall recommendation and on specific rating items. Agreement between reviewers on separate dimensions, the unweighted sum of the dimensions, and various weighted sums was no better than that for the overall recommendation itself. (SLD)

Goodness-of-fit (GOF) indexes provide "rules of thumb"?recommended cutoff values for assessing fit in structural equation modeling. Hu and Bentler (1999) proposed a more rigorous approach to evaluating decision rules based on GOF indexes and, on this basis, proposed new and more stringent cutoff values for many indexes. This article discusses…

Items from two North American instruments, designed to measure students' evaluation of teaching effectiveness, were administered to university students in different countries. Most of the items were judged by the students to be appropriate and important. Statistical analysis showed strong support for both the convergent and divergent validity of…

Findings and research designs used to study university students' evaluations of teaching effectiveness are reviewed. A construct validation approach which recognizes the multidimensionality of both effective teaching and students' evaluations is recommended for further research. (BS)