Intensive Repeated Measures in Naturalistic Settings (IRM-NS)

Question 1

IRM-NS acronym

Answer 1

Intensive Repeated Measures in Naturalistic Settings

Question 2

One Occasion Self-Report Questionnaires: Strengths (3)

Answer 2

• Standardization of stimuli
• Ease of use
• Capacity for high content validity due to sampling domain

Question 3

One Occasion Self-Report Questionnaires: Weaknesses (2)

Answer 3

• Reconstructive memory processes
• Impression management/social desirability

Question 4

Behavioral Observation: Strengths (2)

Answer 4

• No memory problems
• Impression management less of an issue

Question 5

Behavioral Observation: Weaknesses/issues (3)

Answer 5

(1) Resource intensive
(2) Naturalistic setting
-> Often need long observation periods to obtain valid scores
-> Limited access to populations
(3) Laboratory setting
-> Artificial situation/limited sampling of behaviors
-> Limited sampling of situations

Question 6

IRM-NS: Key features (5)

Answer 6

• Self-observations
• Naturalistic settings
• Multiple reports
• Close in time to occurrence of characteristic
• Relies on recent episodic memory

Question 7

Designs for Collecting IRM-NS (4)

Answer 7

• Time-Contingent Recording
• Event-Contingent Recording
• Signal-Contingent Recording
• “Burst” Designs

Question 8

Time-Contingent Recording def

Answer 8

Fixed time interval sampling
E.g. Daily diaries (At the end of the day, complete diary -> prompted response)

Question 9

Event-Contingent Recording def

Answer 9

Event sampling (e.g. complete form as soon as possible following social interaction)
-> Records completed after a certain event

Question 10

Signal-Contingent Recording def

Answer 10

Aka “Beeper” method. Random time interval sampling
-> Signal at random time to report whatever they have to report
-> Collect info that represents the entire living experience (random sampling)

Question 11

“Burst” Designs def

Answer 11

Periods of measurement interspersed with periods of no measurement
-> Can be ANY of the designs
-> Useful for events when we know there’s change happening (e.g. children grow, pple undergo treatment…)

Question 12

IRM-NS: Strengths (5)

Answer 12

• Less reliance on participant’s retrospective memories
• Less reliance on participant to integrate information about self
• Can provide contextual information
• Aggregation of multiple assessments should improve quality of information
• Can be used to characterize fluctuations in the individual as well as stability

Question 13

Ways to Establish Reliability in IRM-NS (2)

Answer 13

• Internal Consistency:Can be assessed for individual measurements or aggregated scores.
• Stability Over Time:Autocorrelations of daily aggregated scores and within-day standard deviations can evaluate temporal stability. These should be consistent if the phenomenon is stationary.
  -> Both with alpha

Question 14

How to Measure Stability Across Days (Social Behavior Inventory)

Answer 14

-> The mean of each scale calculated for each day
-> Coeff Alpha was calculated for each scale based on each of 20-day scores
Coeff alpha often increase as time passes by (4 days < 1 month) - time for behaviour to be stabilized

Question 15

How to Measure Internal Consistency (Social Behavior Inventory)

Answer 15

Coeff alpha

Question 16

Characterizing Behavior (2)

Answer 16

(1) Mean level
(2) Intra-individual variability

Question 17

2 measures of Intra-individual variability

Answer 17

Spin, Flux

Question 18

Intra-individual variability: Flux def

Answer 18

Fluctuations on EACH DIMENSION.
How much a person’s behavior changes in intensity over time.
E.g.: Someone’s level of friendliness might fluctuate a lot from being very warm one day to being distant the next.
Focus =** AMPLITUDE of fluctuation in continuous variable**s (high flux = lot of ups and downs, low flux = stable level)

Question 19

Intra-individual variability: Spin

Answer 19

Applicable to models with** two orthogonal dimensions** (e.g., interpersonal circumplex).
Fluctuations in angular rotation around the person’s mean angular rotation.
-> Variability in behavioral orientation (e.g., from dominant to submissive)
How much a person shifts between DIFF TYPES OF BEHAVIOR over time (e.g., dominance -> warmth -> conflict).
Focus = direction of CHANGE across behaviors.
High spin = frequent switching between behaviors (e.g., friendly one moment, assertive the next).
Low spin = sticking to one type of behavior consistently.

Question 20

Concerns or IRM-NS (4)

Answer 20

• Difficult to interpret meaning of individual’s scores (no norms or criterion-referenced validity)
• Will target individuals comply?
• Sample characteristics and attrition can threaten validity, especially with high participant demands, selective attrition, or noncompliance.
• Short forms with few items may affect internal consistency, making it potentially inferior to longer one-occasion measures.