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ERIC Number: EJ948262
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2011
Pages: 9
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0027-3171
EISSN: N/A
Commentary: Mediation Analysis, Causal Process, and Cross-Sectional Data
Shrout, Patrick E.
Multivariate Behavioral Research, v46 n5 p852-860 2011
Maxwell, Cole, and Mitchell (2011) extended the work of Maxwell and Cole (2007), which raised important questions about whether mediation analyses based on cross-sectional data can shed light on longitudinal mediation process. The latest article considers longitudinal processes that can only be partially explained by an intervening variable, and Maxwell et al. showed that the same general conclusions are obtained, namely that analyses of cross-sectional data will not reveal the longitudinal mediation process. While applauding the advances of the target article, this comment encourages the detailed exploration of alternate causal models in psychology beyond the autoregressive model considered by Maxwell et al. When inferences based on cross-sectional analyses are compared to alternate models, different patterns of bias are likely to be observed. I illustrate how different models of the causal process can be derived using examples from research on psychopathology. (Contains 1 footnote.)
Psychology Press. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Opinion Papers; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Adult Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A