There are many well-known data sets that can be used to illustrate Simpson's Paradox. The Stand Your Ground data presented here shows Simpson's Paradox. In these data, race plays the key role--and not in the way that some students expect.

Multilevel models are often used to evaluate hypotheses about relations among constructs when data are nested within clusters (Raudenbush & Bryk, 2002), although alternative approaches are available when analyzing nested data (Binder & Roberts, 2003; Sterba, 2009). The overarching goal of this article is to suggest when it is appropriate…

Educational researchers commonly use the rule of thumb of "design effect smaller than 2" as the justification of not accounting for the multilevel or clustered structure in their data. The rule, however, has not yet been systematically studied in previous research. In the present study, we generated data from three different models…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the characteristics of missing physical activity (PA) data of children and youth. Method: PA data from the Chinese City Children and Youth Physical Activity Study ("N" = 2,758; 1,438 boys and 1,320 girls; aged 9-17 years old) were used for the study. After the data were sorted by the…

Any librarian who has managed electronic resources has experienced the--for want of words--"joy" of gathering and analyzing usage statistics. Such statistics are important for evaluating the effectiveness of resources and for making important budgeting decisions. Unfortunately, the data are usually tedious to collect, inconsistently organized, of…

Because of the Flynn effect, IQ scores rise as a test norm ages but drop on the introduction of a newly revised test norm. The purpose of the current study was to determine the impact of the Flynn effect on learning disability (LD) diagnoses, the most prevalent special education diagnosis in the United States. Using a longitudinal sample of 875…

Provides a conceptual basis for understanding factor analysis as an analytical technique. Illustrates the basic concepts of factor analysis through Edward L. Rainbow's data from a study of variables influencing students' musical aptitude. Suggests that this technique is most appropriate in music applications where the interrelationships between…

Sibling data drawn from the Kalamazoo Brothers sample are used in this report to assess the adequacy of conventional sociological variables for measuring family background, to estimate the overall effects of family background on test scores, education, occupational status, and earning, and to control family background when estimating the effects…

Reexamines the studies of K. S. Dobson regarding metaanalysis of cognitive-behavioral therapy for depression using the Beck Depression Inventory as an outcome measure. Confirms Dobson's conclusions but shows that about half the difference between CT and other treatments was predictable from researcher allegiance. Comparable analysis of a later set…

Prior to graduating from high school, the vast majority of youth in the United States will take part in at least one community service activity. Although it is frequently assumed that community service is inherently beneficial to those that take part, the activities and processes of youth service programs tend to be unsystematic and vary widely.…

In a preceding research report, ONR/RR-82-1 (Information Loss Caused by Noise in Models for Dichotomous Items), observations were made on the effect of noise accommodated in different types of models on the dichotomous response level. In the present paper, focus is put upon the three-parameter logistic model, which is widely used among…

A study was undertaken to develop guidelines for the interpretation of the parameters of three multidimensional item response theory models and to determine the relationship between the parameters and traditional concepts of item difficulty and discrimination. The three models considered were multidimensional extensions of the one-, two-, and…

Because of the recent popularity of the three-parameter logistic model among the researchers who apply latent trait theory, it will be worthwhile to investigate the effect of noise accommodated in different models. In the present paper, four types of models on the dichotomous response level, Types A, B, C and D, are considered. Type A does not…

This paper discusses the problems of gathering and analyzing data on classroom behaviors. The difficulties involved in using the common pretest-posttest experimental design are described. To grapple with these problems, a study was conducted on the effect of environmental changes on student behavior, employing a time-series design and time-series…

This report examines participation rates in the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program. TRIM2, a microsimulation model that simulated the eligibility and benefit rules of the AFDC program on a state-by-state basis, showed that there had been a dramatic decline after 1981 in the rate at which AFDC families were applying for and…