Social Science Methodology Symposium held April 11, 2014
Sponsored by the Department of Human Development and Family Studies, College of Health and Human Sciences

PRESENTER:  Yaacov Petscher, PhD, Director of Research
                        Florida Center for Reading Research
                        Florida State University

TITLE: Thinking Outside the Box:  Emerging Methods for Establishing Causality

ABSTRACT:   Statistical simulations, federal funding agencies, and publishers of peer-reviewed manuscripts repeatedly underscore the importance of using multilevel models. When individuals are nested within groups, such models are critical for correct inferences, especially as it pertains to estimating treatment effects in randomized controlled trials. Conventional applications of multilevel models for such experimental designs are typically used for single outcomes or multiple outcomes with a multiple hypothesis correction. Further, such models assume that the average treatment effect is the best estimate for inferring causality. In the present talk, I will focus on emerging applications of multilevel models in education and the social sciences including multilevel structural equation models, linear quantile mixed models, and multilevel models for partially nested randomized controlled trials. Data from prior randomized studies will be presented with an illustration of how to estimate each type of model using software such a SAS, Mplus, and R.