Mediation analysis is widely applied in various fields of science, such as psychology, epidemiology, and sociology. In practice, many psychological and behavioral phenomena are dynamic, and the corresponding mediation effects are expected to change over time. However, most existing mediation methods assume a static mediation effect over time,…

Mediation analysis is widely applied in various fields of science, such as psychology, epidemiology, and sociology. In practice, many psychological and behavioral phenomena are dynamic, and the corresponding mediation effects are expected to change over time. However, most existing mediation methods assume a static mediation effect over time,…

This study conducted a comprehensive comparison of Item Response Theory (IRT) linking methods applied to a bifactor model, examining their performance on both multiple choice (MC) and mixed format tests within the common item nonequivalent group design framework. Four distinct multidimensional IRT linking approaches were explored, consisting of…

Differential item functioning (DIF) often arises from multiple sources. Within the context of multidimensional item response theory, this study examined DIF items with varying secondary dimensions using the three DIF methods: SIBTEST, Mantel-Haenszel, and logistic regression. The effect of the number of secondary dimensions on DIF detection rates…

Response styles pose great threats to psychological measurements. This research compares IRTree models and anchoring vignettes in addressing response styles and estimating the target traits. It also explores the potential of combining them at the item level and total-score level (ratios of extreme and middle responses to vignettes). Four models…

Accurate item parameters and standard errors (SEs) are crucial for many multidimensional item response theory (MIRT) applications. A recent study proposed the Gaussian Variational Expectation Maximization (GVEM) algorithm to improve computational efficiency and estimation accuracy (Cho et al., 2021). However, the SE estimation procedure has yet to…

A standard assumption of latent class (LC) analysis is conditional independence, that is the items of the LC are independent of the covariates given the LCs. Several approaches have been proposed for identifying violations of this assumption. The recently proposed likelihood ratio approach is compared to residual statistics (bivariate residuals…

Introduction: Item response theory (IRT) has received much attention in validation of assessment instrument because it allows the estimation of students' ability from any set of the items. Item response theory allows the difficulty and discrimination levels of each item on the test to be estimated. In the framework of IRT, item characteristics are…

Item response theory (IRT) models the relationship between the possible scores on a test item against a test taker's attainment of the latent trait that the item is intended to measure. In this study, we compare two models for tests with polytomously scored items: the optimal scoring (OS) model, a nonparametric IRT model based on the principles of…

Sequential lineups are one of the most commonly used procedures in police departments across the USA. Although this procedure has been the target of much experimental research, there has been comparatively little work formally modeling it, especially the sequential nature of the judgments that it elicits. There are also important gaps in our…

Thurstonian forced-choice modeling is considered to be a powerful new tool to estimate item and person parameters while simultaneously testing the model fit. This assessment approach is associated with the aim of reducing faking and other response tendencies that plague traditional self-report trait assessments. As a result of major recent…

This software review discusses the capabilities of Stata to conduct item response theory modeling. The commands needed for fitting the popular one-, two-, and three-parameter logistic models are initially discussed. The procedure for testing the discrimination parameter equality in the one-parameter model is then outlined. The commands for fitting…

A strong predictor of children's language is performance on non-word repetition (NWR) tasks. However, the basis of this relationship remains unknown. Some suggest that NWR tasks measure phonological working memory, which then affects language growth. Others argue that children's knowledge of language/language experience affects NWR performance. A…

Much research has been devoted to identification of differential item functioning (DIF), which occurs when the item responses for individuals from two groups differ after they are conditioned on the latent trait being measured by the scale. There has been less work examining differential step functioning (DSF), which is present for polytomous…

This article discusses six theoretical frameworks of disability which dominate studies of dyslexia: (1) the biomedical, (2) the biopsychosocial, (3) the social model, (4) the critical realist, (5) the post-structuralistic, and (6) the neurodivergent approach. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate how models of disability alter our understandings…