Research of issues related to disability is consistently evolving in several social science related fields such as social work, psychology, sociology, and education. Disability research often employs large public datasets for researchers to conduct secondary analysis. However, these datasets come with many limitations that can impact the overall…

Determining the number of factors in exploratory factor analysis is arguably the most crucial decision a researcher faces when conducting the analysis. While several simulation studies exist that compare various so-called factor retention criteria under different data conditions, little is known about the impact of missing data on this process.…

Scholars increasingly rely on indirect questioning techniques to reduce social desirability bias and item nonresponse for sensitive survey questions. The major drawback of these approaches, however, is their inefficiency relative to direct questioning. We show how to improve the statistical analysis of the list experiment, randomized response…

Regression discontinuity design (RD) has been widely used to produce reliable causal estimates. Researchers have validated the accuracy of RD design using within study comparisons (Cook, Shadish & Wong, 2008; Cook & Steiner, 2010; Shadish et al, 2011). Within study comparisons examines the validity of a quasi-experiment by comparing its…

This study looked at the effect of a number of factors such as the choice of analytical method, the handling method for missing data, sample size, and proportion of missing data, in order to evaluate the effect of missing data treatment on accuracy of estimation. In order to accomplish this a methodological approach involving simulated data was…

Income is regarded as one of the clearest indicators of socioeconomic status and wellbeing in the developed world and is highly correlated with a wide range of outcomes. Despite its importance, there remains an issue as to the best way to collect income as part of surveys. This paper examines differences in how income is collected in a nationally…