Improving Multiple-Group confirmatory factor analysis in R – A tutorial in measurement invariance with continuous and ordinal indicators

Multiple-group confirmatory factor analysis (MG-CFA) is among the most productive extensions of.structural equation modeling. Many researchers conducting cross-cultural or longitudinal studies are interested in testing for measurement and structural invariance. The aim of the present paper is to provide a tutorial in MG-CFA using the freely available R-packages lavaan, semTools, and semPlot. The combination of these packages enable a highly efficient analysis of the measurement models both for normally distributed as well as ordinal data. Data from two freely available datasets – the first with continuous the second with ordered indicators - will be used to provide a walk-through the individual steps. Accessed 20,554 times on https://pareonline.net from July 09, 2014 to December 31, 2019. For downloads from January 1, 2020 forward, please click on the PlumX Metrics link to the right

SWANSTAT: a user-friendly web application for data analysis using shinydashboard package in R

SWANSTAT is a user-friendly web application and free license that developed from the R programming language using shinydashboard Package. This research aims to create SWANSTAT was to streamline the routine workflow of data analysis so that users who are unfamiliar with R can perform the analysis interactively in a web browser with a cloud computing using a shiny server. The software development method used in this study is the SDLC with the waterfall model. The result of this research is the SWANSTAT software was developed using R by combining various packages and can be accessed online through various types of browsers on http://apps.swanstatistics.com. Besides, SWANSTAT consist of various features including the best visualization, the basis of statistical methods, help documents and tutorials. This research will continuously develop this application by enriching the latest statistical method, as well as improving the quality of features for data science needs

Network psychometrics

In recent years, research on dynamical systems in psychology has emerged, which is analogous to other fields such as biology and physics. One popular and promising line of research involves the modeling of psychological systems as causal systems or networks of cellular automat. The general hypothesis is that noticeable macroscopic behavior—the co-occurrence of aspects of psychology such as cognitive abilities, psychopathological symptoms, or behavior—is not due to the influence of unobserved common causes, such as general intelligence, psychopathological disorders, or personality traits, but rather to emergent behavior in a network of interacting psychological, sociological, biological, and other components. This dissertation concerns the estimation of such psychological networks from datasets. While this line of research originated from a dynamical systems perspective, the developed methods have shown strong utility as exploratory data analysis tools, highlighting unique variance between variables rather than shared variance across variables (e.g., factor analysis). In addition, this dissertation shows that network modeling and latent variable modeling are closely related and can complement one-another. The methods are thus widely applicable in diverse fields of psychological research. To this end, the dissertation is split in three parts. Part I is aimed at empirical researchers with an emphasis on clinical psychology, and introduces the methods in conceptual terms and tutorials. Part II is aimed at psychometricians and methodologists, and discusses the methods in technical terms. Finally, Part III is aimed at R users with an emphasis on personality research

Análise das propriedades psicométricas da Escala de Autocuidado para Argentina

The purpose of this paper is to report the psychometric properties and normative data of the Self-Care Scale in the Argentine population. The scale evaluates the self-care from an integral view of the construct, this includes the external aspects of the self-care, the intrapsychic self-care and the relational aspects of how human take care of themselves. The scale consists of 31 items that are answered from a Likert format that involve seven possible answers. A non-experimental, cross-sectional, instrumental-type study was designed. A non-probabilistic sample made up of 768 subjects residing in different provinces of the Argentine Republic was established. When carrying out the construct validity studies, the Exploratory Factor Analysis indicates the grouping of the items into six factors. With the Confirmatory Factor Analysis, it was observed that the six-factor model presented a good fit. The results show an adequate internal consistency of the test and an adequate test-retest stability after five weeks. The results obtained in the research carried out are consistent with the findings of the original study, which indicates that the studies of the psychometric properties of the scale are reliable and valid to be used in the general Argentine population.El propósito del presente artículo es informar las propiedades psicométricas y los datos normativos de la Escala de Autocuidado en población argentina. Dicha escala mide el autocuidado desde una conceptualización amplia e integral que incluye los aspectos materiales externos del autocuidado, el autocuidado intrapsíquico y los aspectos relacionales de cómo los humanos se cuidan a sí mismos. La escala está compuesta por 31 ítems que se responden con un formato tipo Likert de siete opciones de respuesta. Se diseñó un estudio no experimental, transversal, de tipo instrumental. Se estableció una muestra no probabilística conformada por 768 participantes de la República Argentina. Al realizar los estudios de validez de constructo se efectuó el Análisis Factorial Exploratorio observándose la agrupación de los ítems en seis factores. Con el Análisis Factorial Confirmatorio se observó que el modelo de seis factores presentó un buen ajuste. Los resultados muestran una adecuada consistencia interna del test y una adecuada estabilidad test-retest luego de cinco semanas. En su conjunto, los resultados obtenidos en la investigación realizada son concordantes con los hallazgos del estudio original lo que indica que las propiedades psicométricas de la escala son confiables y válidos para ser utilizados en población general argentina.O objetivo deste artigo é informar as propriedades psicométricas e os dados normativos da Escala de Autocuidado na população argentina. Dita escala mede o autocuidado a partir de uma conceituação ampla e integral, que inclui os aspectos materiais externos do autocuidado, o autocuidado intrapsíquico e os aspectos relacionais de como os seres humanos cuidam de si. A escala está composta por 31 itens que são respondidos em um formato do tipo Likert com sete opções de resposta. Foi desenhado um estudo não experimental, transversal, do tipo instrumental. Foi estabelecida uma amostra não probabilística composta por 768 sujeitos da República Argentina. Ao realizar os estudos de validade de construto, foi efetuada a Análise Fatorial Exploratória, observando-se o agrupamento dos itens em seis fatores. Com a Análise Fatorial Confirmatória, observou-se que o modelo de seis fatores apresentou um bom ajuste. Os resultados demostram uma adequada consistência interna do teste e uma adequada estabilidade teste-reteste após cinco semanas. Como um todo, os resultados obtidos na pesquisa realizada são consistentes com os achados do estudo original, o que indica que as propriedades psicométricas da escala são confiáveis e válidas para uso na população geral argentina

Validation of the Spanish version of the student adaptation to college questionnaire (SACQ-50) with Peruvian students

Objective: To evaluate the psychometric properties of the short version of the Spanish Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire (SACQ-50, Spanish version). Participants: 1513 students from 14 universities in Peru, mainly females (61.5%), aged between 18 and 30 years. Method: Cross-sectional study with the questionnaire administered in person. Confirmatory factorial analysis was conducted to confirm the scale validity. Results: adequate fits were obtained for the multidimensional structure and for the second order factor of the test. Alpha and omega coefficients indicated adequate test reliability. Conclusions: The Spanish version of the SACQ-50 is a multidimensional scale displaying adequate reliability and validity. The scale may be useful for researchers and other professionals working in the university contextPontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, Lima, PerúS

lcsm: an R package and tutorial on latent change score modelling

Latent change score models (LCSMs) are used across disciplines in behavioural sciences to study how constructs change over time. LCSMs can be used to estimate the trajectory of one construct (univariate) and allow the investigation of how changes between two constructs (bivariate) are associated with each other over time. This paper introduces the R package lcsm, a tool that aims to help users understand, analyse, and visualise different latent change score models. The lcsm package provides functions to generate model syntax for basic univariate and bivariate latent change score models with different model specifications. It is also possible to visualise different model specifications in simplified path diagrams. An interactive application illustrates the main functions of the package and demonstrates how the model syntax and path diagrams change based on different model specifications. This R package aims to increase the transparency of reporting analyses and to provide an additional resource to learn latent change score modelling