Corina Owens | University of South Florida (original) (raw)
Papers by Corina Owens
Behavior Research Methods, 2011
Numerous ways to meta-analyze single-case data have been proposed in the literature; however, con... more Numerous ways to meta-analyze single-case data have been proposed in the literature; however, consensus has not been reached on the most appropriate method. One method that has been proposed involves multilevel modeling. For this study, we used Monte Carlo methods to examine the appropriateness of Van den Noortgate and Onghena's (2008) raw-data multilevel modeling approach for the metaanalysis of single-case data. Specifically, we examined the fixed effects (e.g., the overall average treatment effect) and the variance components (e.g., the between-person withinstudy variance in the treatment effect) in a three-level multilevel model (repeated observations nested within individuals, nested within studies). More specifically, bias of the point estimates, confidence interval coverage rates, and interval widths were examined as a function of the number of primary studies per meta-analysis, the modal number of participants per primary study, the modal series length per primary study, the level of autocorrelation, and the variances of the error terms. The degree to which the findings of this study are supportive of using Van den Noortgate and Onghena's (2008) raw-data multilevel modeling approach to meta-analyzing single-case data depends on the particular parameter of interest. Estimates of the average treatment effect tended to be unbiased and produced confidence intervals that tended to overcover, but did come close to the nominal level as Level-3 sample size increased. Conversely, estimates of the variance in the treatment effect tended to be biased, and the confidence intervals for those estimates were inaccurate.
The views of the community and their role in school initiatives are important during school-based... more The views of the community and their role in school initiatives are important during school-based programs. When the ideals of the community and the school are aligned, the chances of the initiative being sustainable and successful are increased. For that reason, a large county-wide school program evaluation used community member focus groups to inform school leaders and program directors on the views of the community during the initiative. The purpose of conducting community member focus groups was to understand to what degree the views of the community members were synchronous with the goals of the program and the impact the program was having on the community. This paper addresses how the focus groups informed the evaluation, lessons learned on organising and conducting focus groups, and the impact school programs have on the surrounding communities. This article has been peer-reviewed and accepted for publication in SLEID, an international journal of scholarship and research tha...
Journal of applied measurement, 2019
Hazardous drinking is a risk factor associated with sexual risk, gender-based violence, and HIV t... more Hazardous drinking is a risk factor associated with sexual risk, gender-based violence, and HIV transmission in South Africa. Consequently, sound and appropriate measurement of drinking behavior is critical to determining what constitutes hazardous drinking. Many research studies use internal consistency estimates as the determining factor in psychometric assessment; however, deeper assessments are needed to best define a measurement tool. Rasch methodology was used to evaluate a shorter version of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, the AUDIT-C, in a sample of adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) who use alcohol and other drugs in South Africa (n =100). Investigations of operational response range, item fit, sensitivity, and response option usage provide a richer picture of AUDIT-C functioning than internal consistency alone in women who are vulnerable to hazardous drinking and therefore at risk of HIV. Analyses indicate that the AUDIT-C does not adequately measure th...
Multilevel modeling has become a common analytic technique across a variety of disciplines includ... more Multilevel modeling has become a common analytic technique across a variety of disciplines including education and other social and behavioral sciences. Such models are often used when researchers examine relationships between school and/or neighborhood characteristics and some individual-level outcome (e.g., academic achievement, high school completion). Although many samples are theoretically cross-classified between multiple level-2 units, the application of cross-classified random effects models is rare in such research. This paper compares model fit and parameter estimates from five different PROC MIXED multilevel modeling approaches—(a) a two-level model with students nested in schools and neighborhood variables included as contextual variables at Level 1, (b) a two-level model with students nested in neighborhoods and school variables included as contextual variables at Level 1, (c) a three-level model with students nested in schools nested in neighborhoods, (d) a three-level...
... Liliana Rodriquez-Campos, University of South Florida, Liliana@usf.edu Michael Berson, Univer... more ... Liliana Rodriquez-Campos, University of South Florida, Liliana@usf.edu Michael Berson, University of South Florida, Berson@usf ... between evaluators and stakeholders during the evaluation process (Cousins, Donohue, & Bloom, 1996; O'Sullivan & D'Agostino, 2002; Rodríguez ...
I dedicate this dissertation to my grandparents whose belief in me could quite possibly have exce... more I dedicate this dissertation to my grandparents whose belief in me could quite possibly have exceeded my belief in myself. Your unwavering love and support motivated me to work hard and succeed. To my Oma and Opa, may you rest in peace and as you look down on me I hope I have made you proud. To my Grandma and Grandfather, your constant encouragement has helped propel me through my studies. I want to thank my parents, Karen and John, for their unconditional love and support. I am forever grateful to you both for pushing me beyond what I thought was possible. I would also like to thank my partner, Ashley, who came in during that final stretch to stand beside me and remind me anything is possible. Thank you all for always believing in me! ACKNOWDLEGEMENTS My journey through doctoral studies could not have been successful without the helpful hands of so many professors and colleagues. First, I would like to thank my major professor, Dr. John M. Ferron, without whose constant guidance and patience I would not have made it this far. He is an outstanding professor and mentor who has helped me realize my own potential. Second, I would like to thank the other members of my doctoral committee, Dr. Robert F. Dedrick who pushed me to think outside of my comfort zone, Dr. Liliana Rodriguez-Campos whose belief in me allowed me to believe in myself, and Dr. Julia Ogg whose kindness helped me push through this challenging dissertation process. Third, in addition to my doctoral committee the whole Department of Educational Measurement and Research has impacted my journey through doctoral studies from our office manager, Jody Duke, to the rest of the faculty members within our department (Jeff Kromrey, Constance Hines and Yi-Hsin Chen). Finally, several students and graduates have played a major role in my doctoral journey. Specifically, Adrienne Cadle, Bethany Bell, Heather Scott, Jennie Farmer, and Aarti Bellara. They were all an inspiration and without their guidance and support I could not have made it through. i TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES.
The International Journal of Interdisciplinary Social Sciences: Annual Review, 2012
Behavior Research Methods, 2010
While conducting intervention research, researchers and practitioners are often interested in how... more While conducting intervention research, researchers and practitioners are often interested in how the intervention functions not only at the group level, but also at the individual level. One way to examine individual treatment effects is through multiple-baseline studies analyzed with multilevel modeling. This analysis allows for the construction of confidence intervals, which are strongly recommended in the reporting guidelines of the American Psychological Association. The purpose of this study was to examine the accuracy of confidence intervals of individual treatment effects obtained from multilevel modeling of multiple-baseline data. Monte Carlo methods were used to examine performance across conditions varying in the number of participants, the number of observations per participant, and the dependency of errors. The accuracy of the confidence intervals depended on the method used, with the greatest accuracy being obtained when multilevel modeling was coupled with the Kenward—Roger method of estimating degrees of freedom.
Journal of Experimental Education, 2011
In this study, the authors aimed to examine 8 of the different methods for computing confidence i... more In this study, the authors aimed to examine 8 of the different methods for computing confidence intervals around alpha that have been proposed to determine which of these, if any, is the most accurate and precise. Monte Carlo methods were used to simulate samples under known and controlled population conditions wherein the underlying item distribution is nonnormal and when the items’ responses are those of rating scales rather than dichotomous items. Overall, one can conclude that, despite concerns expressed over the use of Fisher's method for coefficient alpha, in general, it actually outperformed the other methods. Larger sample sizes and larger coefficient alphas also resulted in better band coverage, whereas smaller number of items resulted in poorer band coverage.
Computer Applications in Engineering Education, 2010
To determine, improve, and refine the quality of the online resources for an engineering course i... more To determine, improve, and refine the quality of the online resources for an engineering course in numerical methods, three assessment instruments were used to gather feedback from (1) the independent instructors of the numerical methods course, (2) the students who use the majority of the resources, and (3) the general students worldwide who use resources on an as-per-need basis. The findings of this study provide strong evidence that the use of the website modules is a valued aide to most students. The availability of information in multiple modes and formats, at any time, for the students provides them with accessible and convenient learning material that enhances traditional methods. In addition, the analyses of the open-ended items by both faculty reviewers and students provided insights into how a website used in a technical course such as Numerical Methods can be effectively organized and implemented to enhance further student learning. Results from the instructor surveys found highest ratings for the perceptions of the degree of helpfulness the modules provided in supplementing student readings and with class presentations, while the results from student surveys found highest ratings in the technological domain. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Comput Appl Eng Educ 20: 426–433, 2012
Behavior Research Methods, 2011
Numerous ways to meta-analyze single-case data have been proposed in the literature; however, con... more Numerous ways to meta-analyze single-case data have been proposed in the literature; however, consensus has not been reached on the most appropriate method. One method that has been proposed involves multilevel modeling. For this study, we used Monte Carlo methods to examine the appropriateness of Van den Noortgate and Onghena's (2008) raw-data multilevel modeling approach for the metaanalysis of single-case data. Specifically, we examined the fixed effects (e.g., the overall average treatment effect) and the variance components (e.g., the between-person withinstudy variance in the treatment effect) in a three-level multilevel model (repeated observations nested within individuals, nested within studies). More specifically, bias of the point estimates, confidence interval coverage rates, and interval widths were examined as a function of the number of primary studies per meta-analysis, the modal number of participants per primary study, the modal series length per primary study, the level of autocorrelation, and the variances of the error terms. The degree to which the findings of this study are supportive of using Van den Noortgate and Onghena's (2008) raw-data multilevel modeling approach to meta-analyzing single-case data depends on the particular parameter of interest. Estimates of the average treatment effect tended to be unbiased and produced confidence intervals that tended to overcover, but did come close to the nominal level as Level-3 sample size increased. Conversely, estimates of the variance in the treatment effect tended to be biased, and the confidence intervals for those estimates were inaccurate.
The views of the community and their role in school initiatives are important during school-based... more The views of the community and their role in school initiatives are important during school-based programs. When the ideals of the community and the school are aligned, the chances of the initiative being sustainable and successful are increased. For that reason, a large county-wide school program evaluation used community member focus groups to inform school leaders and program directors on the views of the community during the initiative. The purpose of conducting community member focus groups was to understand to what degree the views of the community members were synchronous with the goals of the program and the impact the program was having on the community. This paper addresses how the focus groups informed the evaluation, lessons learned on organising and conducting focus groups, and the impact school programs have on the surrounding communities. This article has been peer-reviewed and accepted for publication in SLEID, an international journal of scholarship and research tha...
Journal of applied measurement, 2019
Hazardous drinking is a risk factor associated with sexual risk, gender-based violence, and HIV t... more Hazardous drinking is a risk factor associated with sexual risk, gender-based violence, and HIV transmission in South Africa. Consequently, sound and appropriate measurement of drinking behavior is critical to determining what constitutes hazardous drinking. Many research studies use internal consistency estimates as the determining factor in psychometric assessment; however, deeper assessments are needed to best define a measurement tool. Rasch methodology was used to evaluate a shorter version of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, the AUDIT-C, in a sample of adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) who use alcohol and other drugs in South Africa (n =100). Investigations of operational response range, item fit, sensitivity, and response option usage provide a richer picture of AUDIT-C functioning than internal consistency alone in women who are vulnerable to hazardous drinking and therefore at risk of HIV. Analyses indicate that the AUDIT-C does not adequately measure th...
Multilevel modeling has become a common analytic technique across a variety of disciplines includ... more Multilevel modeling has become a common analytic technique across a variety of disciplines including education and other social and behavioral sciences. Such models are often used when researchers examine relationships between school and/or neighborhood characteristics and some individual-level outcome (e.g., academic achievement, high school completion). Although many samples are theoretically cross-classified between multiple level-2 units, the application of cross-classified random effects models is rare in such research. This paper compares model fit and parameter estimates from five different PROC MIXED multilevel modeling approaches—(a) a two-level model with students nested in schools and neighborhood variables included as contextual variables at Level 1, (b) a two-level model with students nested in neighborhoods and school variables included as contextual variables at Level 1, (c) a three-level model with students nested in schools nested in neighborhoods, (d) a three-level...
... Liliana Rodriquez-Campos, University of South Florida, Liliana@usf.edu Michael Berson, Univer... more ... Liliana Rodriquez-Campos, University of South Florida, Liliana@usf.edu Michael Berson, University of South Florida, Berson@usf ... between evaluators and stakeholders during the evaluation process (Cousins, Donohue, & Bloom, 1996; O'Sullivan & D'Agostino, 2002; Rodríguez ...
I dedicate this dissertation to my grandparents whose belief in me could quite possibly have exce... more I dedicate this dissertation to my grandparents whose belief in me could quite possibly have exceeded my belief in myself. Your unwavering love and support motivated me to work hard and succeed. To my Oma and Opa, may you rest in peace and as you look down on me I hope I have made you proud. To my Grandma and Grandfather, your constant encouragement has helped propel me through my studies. I want to thank my parents, Karen and John, for their unconditional love and support. I am forever grateful to you both for pushing me beyond what I thought was possible. I would also like to thank my partner, Ashley, who came in during that final stretch to stand beside me and remind me anything is possible. Thank you all for always believing in me! ACKNOWDLEGEMENTS My journey through doctoral studies could not have been successful without the helpful hands of so many professors and colleagues. First, I would like to thank my major professor, Dr. John M. Ferron, without whose constant guidance and patience I would not have made it this far. He is an outstanding professor and mentor who has helped me realize my own potential. Second, I would like to thank the other members of my doctoral committee, Dr. Robert F. Dedrick who pushed me to think outside of my comfort zone, Dr. Liliana Rodriguez-Campos whose belief in me allowed me to believe in myself, and Dr. Julia Ogg whose kindness helped me push through this challenging dissertation process. Third, in addition to my doctoral committee the whole Department of Educational Measurement and Research has impacted my journey through doctoral studies from our office manager, Jody Duke, to the rest of the faculty members within our department (Jeff Kromrey, Constance Hines and Yi-Hsin Chen). Finally, several students and graduates have played a major role in my doctoral journey. Specifically, Adrienne Cadle, Bethany Bell, Heather Scott, Jennie Farmer, and Aarti Bellara. They were all an inspiration and without their guidance and support I could not have made it through. i TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES.
The International Journal of Interdisciplinary Social Sciences: Annual Review, 2012
Behavior Research Methods, 2010
While conducting intervention research, researchers and practitioners are often interested in how... more While conducting intervention research, researchers and practitioners are often interested in how the intervention functions not only at the group level, but also at the individual level. One way to examine individual treatment effects is through multiple-baseline studies analyzed with multilevel modeling. This analysis allows for the construction of confidence intervals, which are strongly recommended in the reporting guidelines of the American Psychological Association. The purpose of this study was to examine the accuracy of confidence intervals of individual treatment effects obtained from multilevel modeling of multiple-baseline data. Monte Carlo methods were used to examine performance across conditions varying in the number of participants, the number of observations per participant, and the dependency of errors. The accuracy of the confidence intervals depended on the method used, with the greatest accuracy being obtained when multilevel modeling was coupled with the Kenward—Roger method of estimating degrees of freedom.
Journal of Experimental Education, 2011
In this study, the authors aimed to examine 8 of the different methods for computing confidence i... more In this study, the authors aimed to examine 8 of the different methods for computing confidence intervals around alpha that have been proposed to determine which of these, if any, is the most accurate and precise. Monte Carlo methods were used to simulate samples under known and controlled population conditions wherein the underlying item distribution is nonnormal and when the items’ responses are those of rating scales rather than dichotomous items. Overall, one can conclude that, despite concerns expressed over the use of Fisher's method for coefficient alpha, in general, it actually outperformed the other methods. Larger sample sizes and larger coefficient alphas also resulted in better band coverage, whereas smaller number of items resulted in poorer band coverage.
Computer Applications in Engineering Education, 2010
To determine, improve, and refine the quality of the online resources for an engineering course i... more To determine, improve, and refine the quality of the online resources for an engineering course in numerical methods, three assessment instruments were used to gather feedback from (1) the independent instructors of the numerical methods course, (2) the students who use the majority of the resources, and (3) the general students worldwide who use resources on an as-per-need basis. The findings of this study provide strong evidence that the use of the website modules is a valued aide to most students. The availability of information in multiple modes and formats, at any time, for the students provides them with accessible and convenient learning material that enhances traditional methods. In addition, the analyses of the open-ended items by both faculty reviewers and students provided insights into how a website used in a technical course such as Numerical Methods can be effectively organized and implemented to enhance further student learning. Results from the instructor surveys found highest ratings for the perceptions of the degree of helpfulness the modules provided in supplementing student readings and with class presentations, while the results from student surveys found highest ratings in the technological domain. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Comput Appl Eng Educ 20: 426–433, 2012