Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) is a commonly used statistical technique for examining the relationships between variables (e.g., items) and the factors (e.g., latent traits) they depict. There are several decisions that must be made when using EFA, with one of the more important being choice of the rotation criterion. This selection can be…

Problem Statement: Studies show that wellness is closely associated with individual life style. Thus, any efforts toward improving wellness should target aspects of a person's life style. A means of assessing holistic wellness is needed to design programs that increase individuals'/clients' health and wellness and to develop psychological…

Problem Statement: Studies on the factors of student motivation are currently addressing issues such as student attitudes, studying principles, studying environments, musical works and some personal issues. All of these elements undoubtedly have an effect on student motivation and success, so instructors should consider them while helping students…

Possible connections between, and sex differences in, mathematics anxiety and learning environment perceptions were investigated using quantitative and qualitative methods with 745 high school students in 34 different mathematics classrooms in four high schools in Southern California. The "What Is Happening In this Class?" (WIHIC)…

We apply collaborative filtering (CF) to dichotomously scored student response data (right, wrong, or no interaction), finding optimal parameters for each student and item based on cross-validated prediction accuracy. The approach is naturally suited to comparing different models, both unidimensional and multidimensional in ability, including a…

One of the challenges associated with education becoming an evidence-based practice is teachers' attitude toward education research. Little is known about why teachers may not look to research to solve instructional problems, but it is likely linked to teachers' attitudes toward education research. The purpose of this dissertation was to…

The purpose of this study is twofold: (1) to initialize a new conceptualization of positive feature based Friendship Quality (FQUA) scale on the basis of four dimensions: Closeness, Help, Acceptance, and Safety; and (2) to develop and validate FQUA scale in the form of reflective measurement model. The scale development and validation procedures…

The purpose of this study was to identify what leadership behaviors are associated with each of Spillane's (2006) three conceptually distinct forms of distributed leadership, and to determine whether specific influence tactics (Yukl, Seifert & Chavez, 2008) are differentially associated with each form. A two-phased, mixed methods design was…

Objectives: Using baseline and second wave data, the study evaluated the measurement and structural properties of parenting stress, personal mastery, and economic strain with N = 381 lower income parents who decided to join and those who did not join in a child development savings account program. Methods: Structural equation modeling mean and…

Objectives: Advancing human rights is a core competency of U.S. social work education; yet, human rights attitudes and behaviors have never been measured in the social work literature. Thus, this article describes the development and initial validation of two scales, Human Rights Engagement in Social Work (HRESW) and Human Rights Exposure in…

The present study aims to determine the validity and reliability of the academic resilience scale in Turkish high school. The participances of the study includes 378 high school students in total (192 female and 186 male). A set of analyses were conducted in order to determine the validity and reliability of the study. Firstly, both exploratory…

The current study investigated self-reported positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) in high school students (N = 451) within three academic contexts: homework, classwork/tests, and after-school activities. We examined whether context-specific emotions predicted grades, life satisfaction, and discipline records. Our findings revealed that…

Various consumer values and perceived product attributes trigger consumptive behaviors of athletic team merchandise (Lee, Trail, Kwon, & Anderson, 2011). Likewise, using a principal component analysis technique on a student sample, a measurement scale was proposed that consisted of nine factors affecting the purchase of athletic team…

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a highly heterogeneous disorder, and the phenotypic structure comprising inattentive and hyperactive-impulsive type symptoms has been the focus of a growing body of recent research. Methodological studies are needed to better characterize phenotypes to advance research as well as clinical…

Purpose: We estimated the 30-day readmission rate of Medicare beneficiaries with diabetes, across levels of rurality. Methods: We merged the 2005 Medicare Chronic Conditions 5% sample data with the 2007 Area Resource File. The study population was delimited to those with diabetes and at least 1 hospitalization in the year. Unadjusted readmission…