Books by Ioannis Tsaousis
Papers by Ioannis Tsaousis
Psychosomatic Medicine, 2020
Educational and Psychological Measurement
The main thesis of the present study is to use the Bayesian structural equation modeling (BSEM) m... more The main thesis of the present study is to use the Bayesian structural equation modeling (BSEM) methodology of establishing approximate measurement invariance (A-MI) using data from a national examination in Saudi Arabia as an alternative to not meeting strong invariance criteria. Instead, we illustrate how to account for the absence of measurement invariance using relative compared to exact criteria. A secondary goal was to compare latent means across groups using invariant parameters only and through utilizing exact and relative evaluative-MI protocol suggested equivalence of the thresholds using prior variances equal to 0.10. Subsequent differences between groups were evaluated using effect size criteria and the prior-posterior predictive p-value (PPPP), which proved to be invaluable in attesting for differences that are beyond zero, some meaningless nonzero estimate, and the three commonly used indices of effect sizes described by Cohen in 1988 (i.e., .20, .50, and .80). Results...
Aggression and Violent Behavior, 2016
Abstract Bullying perpetration and peer victimization has long been considered an important socia... more Abstract Bullying perpetration and peer victimization has long been considered an important social and clinical problem. Children and adolescents who are bullied are at increased risk for mental health problems. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between self-esteem and bullying behavior (i.e. perpetration and peer victimization) using meta-analytic procedures. Online databases up to June 2014 were searched, and bibliographies of retrieved studies were examined, for studies that examined the association between self-esteem and bullying perpetration/peer victimization in children and adolescents. From an original pool of 936 studies, 121 non duplicated studies were identified that met criteria for inclusion. Possible moderators (e.g. age, source of bullying assessment, year of publication, etc.) were also examined. In the analyses, using a random-effects model, it was found that peer victimization is negatively associated with self-esteem, with a mean effect size of r = − 0.27. A negative but trivial association was also found ( r = − 0.07) between bullying behavior and self-esteem. Results of various sensitivity analyses revealed these effects to be robust, with little evidence of selection (publication) bias. The implications of the meta-analytic findings for future research on bullying perpetration and peer victimization prevention are discussed.
Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment
This study evaluated the psychometric quality of a computerized adaptive testing (CAT) version of... more This study evaluated the psychometric quality of a computerized adaptive testing (CAT) version of the general cognitive ability test (GCAT), using a simulation study protocol put forth by Han, K. T. (2018a). For the needs of the analysis, three different sets of items were generated, providing an item pool of 165 items. Before evaluating the efficiency of the GCAT, all items in the final item pool were linked (equated), following a sequential approach. Data were generated using a standard normal for 10,000 virtual individuals ( M = 0 and SD = 1). Using the measure’s 165-item bank, the ability value (θ) for each participant was estimated. maximum Fisher information (MFI) and maximum likelihood estimation with fences (MLEF) were used as item selection and score estimation methods, respectively. For item exposure control, the fade away method (FAM) was preferred. The termination criterion involved a minimum SE ≤ 0.33. The study revealed that the average number of items administered for...
Frontiers in Psychiatry
Background: Distraction is a functional emotion regulation strategy utilized to relieve emotional... more Background: Distraction is a functional emotion regulation strategy utilized to relieve emotional distress. Within the attention economy perspective, distraction is increasingly associated with digital technology use, performance impairments and interference with higher-order cognitive processes. Research on smartphone distraction and its association with problematic smartphone use is still scarce and there is no available psychometric assessment tool to assess this cognitive and emotive process parsimoniously.Method: The present study reports the development and evaluation of the psychometric properties of the Smartphone Distraction Scale (SDS) through exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, construct validity, gender invariance, and latent mean differences. The study was conducted in a sample of British university students (N = 1,001; M = 21.10 years, SD = 2.77).Results: The 16-item SDS was best conceptualized in a four-factor model solution comprising attention impulsivenes...
Frontiers in Psychology
The purpose of the present study was to profile high school students’ achievement as a function o... more The purpose of the present study was to profile high school students’ achievement as a function of their demographic characteristics, parent attributes (e.g., education), and school behaviors (e.g., number of absences). Students were nested within schools in the Saudi Arabia Kingdom. Out of a large sample of 500k, participants involved 3 random samples of 2,000 students measured during the years 2016, 2017, and 2018. Randomization was conducted at the student level to ensure that all school units will be represented and at their respective frequency. Students were nested within 50 high schools. We adopted the multilevel latent profile analysis protocol put forth by Schmiege et al. (2018) and Mäkikangas et al. (2018) that account for nested data and tested latent class structure invariance over time. Results pointed to the presence of a 4-profile solution based on BIC, the Bayes factor, and several information criteria put forth by Masyn (2013). Latent profile separation was mostly g...
Frontiers in Psychology
The main aim of the present study was to investigate the presence of Differential Item Functionin... more The main aim of the present study was to investigate the presence of Differential Item Functioning (DIF) using a latent class (LC) analysis approach. Particularly, we examined potential sources of DIF in relation to gender. Data came from 6,265 Saudi Arabia students, who completed a high-stakes standardized admission test for university entrance. The results from a Latent Class Analysis (LCA) revealed a three-class solution (i.e., high, average, and low scorers). Then, to better understand the nature of the emerging classes and the characteristics of the people who comprise them, we applied a new stepwise approach, using the Multiple Indicator Multiple Causes (MIMIC) model. The model identified both uniform and non-uniform DIF effects for several items across all scales of the test, although, for the majority of them, the DIF effect sizes were negligible. Findings from this study have important implications for both measurement quality and interpretation of the results. Particularly, results showed that gender is a potential source of DIF for latent class indicators; thus, it is important to include those direct effects in the latent class regression model, to obtain unbiased estimates not only for the measurement parameters but also of the structural parameters. Ignoring these effects might lead to misspecification of the latent classes in terms of both the size and the characteristics of each class, which in turn, could lead to misinterpretations of the obtained latent class results. Implications of the results for practice are discussed.
Frontiers in Psychology
The purpose of the present study was to model math achievement at both the person and university ... more The purpose of the present study was to model math achievement at both the person and university levels of the analyses in order to understand the optimal factor structure of math competency. Data involved 2,881 students who took a national mathematics examination as part of their entry at the university public system in Saudi Arabia. Four factors from the National math examination comprised the math achievement measure, namely, numbers and operations, algebra and analysis, geometry and measurement, and, statistics and probabilities. Data were analyzed using the aggregate method and by use of Multilevel Structural Equation Modeling (MSEM). Results indicated that both a unidimensional and a 4-factor correlated model fitted the data equally well using aggregate data, where for reasons of parsimony the unidimensional model was the preferred choice with these data. When modeling data including clustering, results pointed to alternative factor structures at the person and university levels. Thus, a unidimensional model provided the best fit at the University level, whereas a four-factor correlated model was most descriptive for person level data. The optimal simple structure was evaluated using the Ryu and West (2009) methodology for partially saturating the MSEM model and also met criteria for discriminant validation as described in Gorsuch (1983). Furthermore, a university level variable, namely the year of establishment, pointed to the superiority of older institutions with regard to math achievement. It is concluded that ignoring a multilevel structure in the data may result in erroneous conclusions with regard to the optimal factor structure and the tests of structural models following that.
Frontiers in Applied Mathematics and Statistics
International Journal of Testing
Schizophrenia bulletin, Oct 19, 2018
Elucidating schizotypal traits is important if we are to understand the various manifestations of... more Elucidating schizotypal traits is important if we are to understand the various manifestations of psychosis spectrum liability and to reliably identify individuals at high risk for psychosis. The present study examined the network structures of (1) 9 schizotypal personality domains and (2) 74 individual schizotypal items, and (3) explored whether networks differed across gender and culture (North America vs China). The study was conducted in a sample of 27001 participants from 12 countries and 21 sites (M age = 22.12; SD = 6.28; 37.5% males). The Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (SPQ) was used to assess 74 self-report items aggregated in 9 domains. We used network models to estimate conditional dependence relations among variables. In the domain-level network, schizotypal traits were strongly interconnected. Predictability (explained variance of each node) ranged from 31% (odd/magical beliefs) to 55% (constricted affect), with a mean of 43.7%. In the item-level network, variabl...
Schizophrenia research, Jan 19, 2018
Schizotypal traits are expressions of underlying vulnerability to psychotic disorders which have ... more Schizotypal traits are expressions of underlying vulnerability to psychotic disorders which have a potential impact on mental health status, neurocognition, quality of life, and daily functioning. To date, little research has examined epidemiologic landscape of schizotypal traits at the cross-national level. Our aim was to study the expression of schizotypal traits by sex, age, and country in a combined sample gathered from 12 countries. A total of 27,001 participants completed the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (SPQ). The mean age of participants was 22.12 (SD=6.28); 37.5% (n=10,126) were males. Schizotypal traits varied according to sex, age, and country. Females scored higher than males in the positive dimension, whereas males scored higher in the disorganization dimension. By age, a significant decrease in the positive schizotypal traits was observed. Epidemiological expression of schizotypal traits varied by country. Moreover, several interactions by sex, age, and countr...
Schizophrenia research, Jan 4, 2017
The Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire-Brief (SPQ-B) was developed with the aim of examining v... more The Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire-Brief (SPQ-B) was developed with the aim of examining variations in healthy trait schizotypy, as well as latent vulnerability to psychotic-spectrum disorders. No previous study has studied the cross-cultural validity of the SPQ-B in a large cross-national sample. The main goal of the present study was to analyze the reliability and the internal structure of SPQ-B scores in a multinational sample of 28,426 participants recruited from 14 countries. The mean age was 22.63years (SD=7.08; range 16-68years), 37.7% (n=10,711) were men. The omega coefficients were high, ranging from 0.86 to 0.92 for the total sample. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed that SPQ-B items were grouped either in a theoretical structure of three first-order factors (Cognitive-Perceptual, Interpersonal, and Disorganized) or in a bifactor model (three first-order factors plus a general factor of schizotypal personality). In addition, the results supported configural but ...
Educational and Psychological Measurement, 2017
Frontiers in Psychology, 2016
The purpose of the present study was to relate response strategy with person ability estimates. T... more The purpose of the present study was to relate response strategy with person ability estimates. Two behavioral strategies were examined: (a) the strategy to skip items in order to save time on timed tests, and, (b) the strategy to select two responses on an item, with the hope that one of them may be considered correct. Participants were 4,422 individuals who were administered a standardized achievement measure related to math, biology, chemistry, and physics. In the present evaluation, only the physics subscale was employed. Two analyses were conducted: (a) a person-based one to identify differences between groups and potential correlates of those differences, and, (b) a measure-based analysis in order to identify the parts of the measure that were responsible for potential group differentiation. For (a) person abilities the 2-PL model was employed and later the 3-PL and 4-PL models in order to estimate upper and lower asymptotes of person abilities. For (b) differential item functioning, differential test functioning, and differential distractor functioning were investigated. Results indicated that there were significant differences between groups with completers having the highest ability compared to both non-attempters and dual responders. There were no significant differences between no-attempters and dual responders. The present findings have implications for response strategy efficacy and measure evaluation, revision, and construction.
Comprehensive Psychiatry, 2016
Increased schizotypal traits are observed in a percentage of the general population and in the sc... more Increased schizotypal traits are observed in a percentage of the general population and in the schizophrenia-spectrum and have been associated with impairments in working memory. In this study we examined the effects of four schizotypal dimensions [Negative (NegS), Paranoid (ParS), Cognitive-Perceptual (CPS), Disorganized (DiS)] on executive working memory (EWM), as mediated by set-shifting, planning and control inhibition. We also examined whether these associations are moderated by family-history of psychosis. Our sample consisted of 110 unaffected first-degree relatives of schizophrenia-spectrum patients and 120 control individuals. Schizotypy was assessed with the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire. Participants were also tested with the Letter-Number Sequencing, Wisconsin Card Sorting, Stroop Color-Word and Stockings of Cambridge tasks. The effects of set-shifting, control inhibition and planning on the relationship between schizotypy and EWM were examined with mediation analyses. Moderated-mediation analyses examined potential moderating effects of group membership (unaffected relative/community participant). All mediators were significant in the relationship between NegS and EWM. The effects of ParS were mediated only by set-shifting and planning. Planning and control inhibition were the only significant mediators on the effects of CPS and DiS on EWM, respectively. The moderated-mediation analyses revealed that these findings apply only in the community group. We found that the effects of different schizotypal dimensions on EWM are mediated by other cognitive processes in individuals without personal/family history of psychosis. This is probably due to either more severe impairments in the cognitive processes of the relatives or restrictions in our sample and study-design.
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Books by Ioannis Tsaousis
Papers by Ioannis Tsaousis