‘My favourite things to do’ and ‘my favourite people’: Exploring salient aspects of children’s self-concept

This study explores the potential of the ‘draw-and-write’ method for inviting children to communicate salient aspects of their self-concept. Irish primary school children aged 10–13 years drew and wrote about their favourite people and things to do (social and active self). Children drew and described many salient activities (39 in total) and people – including pets. Results suggest that widely used, adult-constructed self-esteem scales for children, while multidimensional, are limited, and that ‘draw-and-write’ is an effective multimodal method with which children can express their social and active self-concepts

Origins of Modern Data Analysis Linked to the Beginnings and Early Development of Computer Science and Information Engineering

The history of data analysis that is addressed here is underpinned by two themes, -- those of tabular data analysis, and the analysis of collected heterogeneous data. "Exploratory data analysis" is taken as the heuristic approach that begins with data and information and seeks underlying explanation for what is observed or measured. I also cover some of the evolving context of research and applications, including scholarly publishing, technology transfer and the economic relationship of the university to society.Comment: 26 page

Testing the dimensionality of the quality management construct

© 2014 Taylor & Francis. Numerous empirical studies have conceptualised quality management (QM) as either a multidimensional or unidimensional construct. While few prior studies tested some aspects of the assumed dimensional structure of the construct, no study has been found to have tested the construct's dimensionality using alternative factor analysis models. To gain a better insight into dimensional properties of the QM construct, this paper tests its dimensionality using three confirmatory factor analysis models (oblique factor model, higher-order factor model, and one-factor model) on a subset of data collected in a larger study that investigated the effects of QM on competitive advantage using a sample of 288 hotel managers in Egypt. The results of the three tests indicate that the QM construct is multidimensional. While this study contributes to advancing the QM theory and practice, further studies are needed to investigate the dimensional properties of the construct in greater depth. The results of this study may therefore stimulate research in this area and encourage the much needed debate on the dimensionality of the QM construct

Measuring Future Time Perspective across Adulthood: Development and Evaluation of a Brief Multidimensional Questionnaire.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY: Despite calls for the consideration of future time perspective (FTP) as a multidimensional construct, mostly unidimensional measurement instruments have been used. This study had two objectives: (a) to develop a brief multidimensional questionnaire for assessing FTP in adulthood and evaluate its psychometric properties; and (b) to examine age associations and age-group differences of the dimensions of FTP. DESIGN AND METHODS: Data were collected from 625 community-residing adults between the ages of 18 and 93, representing young, middle-aged, and older adults. The psychometric evaluation involved exploratory factor analyses (EFA) and confirmatory FA (CFA), reliability and validity analyses, and measurement invariance testing. Zero-order and partial correlations were used to examine the association of the dimensions of FTP with age, and multivariate analysis of variance was used to examine age-group differences. RESULTS: EFA and CFA supported a three-factor solution: Future as Open, Future as Limited, and Future as Ambiguous. Metric measurement invariance for this factor structure was confirmed across the three age groups. Reliability and validity analyses provided evidence of sound psychometric properties of the brief questionnaire. Age was negatively associated with Future as Open and positively associated with Future as Limited. Young adults exhibited significantly greater ambiguity toward the future than middle-aged or older adults. IMPLICATIONS: This study provides evidence in support of the psychometric properties of a new brief multidimensional FTP scale. It also provides evidence for a pattern of age associations and age-group differences consistent with life-span developmental theory

Internal and External Validity of Sluggish Cognitive Tempo in Young Adolescents with ADHD

Adolescents with Sluggish Cognitive Tempo (SCT) show symptoms of slowness, mental confusion, excessive daydreaming, low motivation, and drowsiness/sleepiness. Although many symptoms of SCT reflect internalizing states, no study has evaluated the utility of self-report of SCT in an ADHD sample. Further, it remains unclear whether SCT is best conceptualized as a unidimensional or multidimensional construct. In a sample of 262 adolescents comprehensively diagnosed with ADHD, the present study evaluated the dimensionality of a SCT scale and compared CFA and bifactor model fits for parent- and self-report versions. Analyses revealed the three-factor bifactor model to be the best fitting model. In addition, SCT factors predicted social and academic impairment and internalizing symptoms. Therefore, SCT as a multidimensional construct appears to have clinical utility in predicting impairment. Also, multiple reporters should be used, as they predicted different areas of functioning and were not invariant, suggesting that each rater adds unique information