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. 2022 Dec;82(6):1087-1106.
doi: 10.1177/00131644211072833. Epub 2022 Jan 20.

Identifying Ability and Nonability Groups: Incorporating Response Times Using Mixture Modeling

Georgios Sideridis  1   2 , Ioannis Tsaousis  3 , Khaleel Al-Harbi  4
Affiliations

Identifying Ability and Nonability Groups: Incorporating Response Times Using Mixture Modeling

Georgios Sideridis et al. Educ Psychol Meas. 2022 Dec.

Abstract

The goal of the present study was to address the analytical complexity of incorporating responses and response times through applying the Jeon and De Boeck mixture item response theory model in Mplus 8.7. Using both simulated and real data, we attempt to identify subgroups of responders that are rapid guessers or engage knowledge retrieval strategies. When applying the mixture model to a measure of contextual error in linguistics results pointed to the presence of a knowledge retrieval strategy. That is, a participant either knows the content (morphology, grammar rules) and can identify the error, or lacks the requisite knowledge and cannot benefit from spending more time on an item. In contrast, as item difficulty progressed, the high-ability group utilized the additional time to make informed guesses. The methodology is illustrated using annotated code in Mplus 8.7.

Keywords: IRT; Mplus; guessing; knowledge retrieval; response time.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Two-Class Model With Simulated Data.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Test Information Function and Conditional Standard Error of Measurement for Contextual Error Measure in Example 2.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Response Time Distributions in the Measurement of Conceptual Error.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Two-Class Model for the Measurement of Contextual Error.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Mean Log-Response Times Across Latent Classes Per Item of the Contextual Error Construct.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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