In the field of social sciences, certain tasks, such as the identification of typologies and the characterization of groups of individuals according to a set of questions, tend to pose a challenge for researchers. Further complications arise if the chosen rating scale is from 0 to 10, since the responses can be treated either as metric or…

Multiple imputation (MI), a two-stage process whereby missing data are imputed multiple times and the resulting estimates of the parameter(s) of interest are combined across the completed datasets, is becoming increasingly popular for handling missing data. However, MI can result in biased inference if not carried out appropriately or if the…

Missing data is endemic in much educational research. However, practices such as step-wise regression common in the educational research literature have been shown to be dangerous when significant data are missing, and multiple imputation (MI) is generally recommended by statisticians. In this paper, we provide a review of these advances and their…

The fulfillment of the basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness as postulated within self-determination theory was hypothesized to play an energizing role in identity formation, conceptualized as multiple dimensions of exploration and commitment. Two studies among high school and college students (N = 714) were conducted…

Randomized response (RR) is a well-known method for measuring sensitive behavior. Yet this method is not often applied because: (i) of its lower efficiency and the resulting need for larger sample sizes which make applications of RR costly; (ii) despite its privacy-protection mechanism the RR design may not be followed by every respondent; and…

The conclusion of a 1999 Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) report that wage gains for training are higher for workers with lower levels of education was revisited using data for males from the 1997 Australian Survey of Education and Training (SET). The study used methods similar to the OECD report (ordinary least squares…

Illustrates problems facing researchers trying to demonstrate causal relationships between types of nonparental care and differences between groups of Swedish children. Argues that efforts must be made to validate and interpret differences that are found. Indicates ways to avoid misinterpretation of differences that are attributable to…