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CHS Home > Services > Research & Training > RESEARCH TOOLS

Lighthouse Analytical Training Series

The documents listed below were developed by Lighthouse Institute staff under a variety of grants (see individual acknowledgements) to help researchers overcome specific problems associated with the collection and analysis of data generated during substance abuse treatment research. They are available free for downloading.

Accessing Pooled GAIN and EBTx data
Acknowledgement of funding and data sources for GAIN data
Cluster Analysis
Data Cleaning and Replacement of Missing Values
Discriminant Analysis
Exploratory Factor Analysis with alpha method and varimax rotation
Imputation of Index Scores with Missing Data
Intra-class Correlation for Test-Retest Reliability and/or Stability
Means Tables
Merging Files: Adding Variables or Cases
Reliability: Calculating Cronbach's Alpha
Repeated Measures Analysis
Survival Analysis/Life Tables
Tukey Box Plots
Using propensity score to create an equivalent comparison group


Author:Melissa Ives, Rodney Funk, Michael L. Dennis and Susan Godley
Name:Accessing Pooled GAIN and EBTx data
Description:To provide information about the kinds of data sharing that is possible among grantees or with those conducting secondary analyses and to provide information about HIPAA requirements prior to data sharing. This memo provides information about data sharing agreements (DSAs) and creating an abstract to obtain permission to use pooled GAIN (Dennis et al., 2003) and EBTx data.
Date:12/15/2010
 
File Name: Access.pdf
File Version: 12/10
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 32 K


Author:Melissa Ives, Rodney Funk, Pamela Ihnes and Michael L. Dennis
Name:Acknowledgement of funding and data sources for GAIN data
Description:To provide instructions and information needed to create appropriate acknowledgements of those who provided data, wrote or reviewed the data or text, or provided procedural oversight for articles, books, presentations, etc. (Includes sample text and a table of CSAT and CHS studies where the GAIN (Dennis et al., 2006) was used.
Date:4/27/2011
 
File Name: Acknowledgement.pdf
File Version: 4/11
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 112 K


Author:Rodney Funk, Melissa Ives and Michael Dennis
Name:Cluster Analysis
Description:Cluster analysis is an exploratory technique used to develop a typology for describing the major subgroups in a population that is heterogeneous on more than one dimension of variables, settings, or over time. The aim of this memo is to explain the method the authors typically use to obtain a cluster analysis and its subsequent validation using SPSS (Version 7.5 to 14.0).
Date:3/21/2006
 
File Name: Cluster.pdf
File Version: 3/06
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 124 K


Author:Melissa McDermeit, Rodney Funk and Michael Dennis
Name:Data Cleaning and Replacement of Missing Values
Description:To provide methods of handling missing and inconsistent data. Consistency codes that tell the analyst the type of missing data, will be covered first. Then the replacement of those codes based on type of question and other cleaning issues will be discussed. The methods described herein are based on data cleaning done with the Global Appraisal of Individual Needs (GAIN; Dennis, 1998).
Date:6/24/1999
 
File Name: missing_data_1.pdf
File Version: 6/99
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 46 K


Author:Melissa Ives, Rodney Funk and Michael L. Dennis
Name:Discriminant Analysis
Description:Discriminant function analysis is used to categorize records into mutually exclusive groups based on a series of predictor variables. The results from the classification function coefficients are then used to create a calculation rule to assign groups for new cases where the grouping value is unknown.
Date:4/23/2007
 
File Name: Discrim.pdf
File Version: 4/07
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 95 K


Author:Melissa McDermeit, Rodney Funk and Michael Dennis
Name:Exploratory Factor Analysis with alpha method and varimax rotation
Description:One of the uses of Factor Analysis is for the development and validation of scales within an inventory or test battery. Factor Analysis can be used to identify groups of similar items, create scales, and, thereby, reduce the number of variables used in further analysis. Factor Analysis can also be used to test the factor validity of test inventory or battery to make sure that items are more associated with the scales to which they are assigned that other scales or tests in the battery.
Date:1/05/2000
 
File Name: facor_analysis.pdf
File Version: 1/00
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 27 K


Author:Rodney Funk , Melissa Ives and Michael L. Dennis
Name:Imputation of Index Scores with Missing Data
Description:To provide a preferred method for calculating values for summative index scores with missing data.
Date:4/23/2007
 
File Name: Index_Imputation.pdf
File Version: 4/07
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 38 K


Author:Rodney Funk and Michael Dennis
Name:Intra-class Correlation for Test-Retest Reliability and/or Stability
Description:Standard texts on generalizability theory and psychometrics (e.g., Hayes, 1988; Lord & Novick, 1968; Nunnally & Bernstein, 1994) often recommend testing reliability with an intra-class correlation coefficient. This index represents the percentage of variance explained in the score by individual (or other unit of observation) and ranges from 0 to 1. It can be used to estimate the stability of measure over time (test-retest reliability if a short enough time) and/or to partial-out systematic variation from other sources (e.g., variations in raters, context) that would otherwise be included in the error in a Pearson Product Moment Correlation. Our aim here is to provide an example of how to use SPSS (Version 9.0, 8.0.1 or 7.5) to estimate the intra-class correlation coefficient and its 95% C.I. The first example is from data first appearing in Potthoff and Roy (1964) and is also used in an example in the SPSS Advanced Statistics 7.5 manual (SPSS, 1997). This example shows how to estimate the intra-class correlation coefficient with four time periods. The second example shows how when calculated on two groups (test-retest), the intra-class correlation coefficient is equal to the Person Moment correlation coefficient, while also showing the difference between reliability and stability.
Date:6/24/1999
 
File Name: intracorr1.pdf
File Version: 6/99
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 34 K


Author:Melissa McDermeit, Rodney Funk and Michael Dennis
Name:Means Tables
Description:To show by example how to run simple means and tables of means and other descriptive statistics.
Date:2/18/2000
 
File Name: Means.pdf
File Version: 2/00
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 891 K


Author:Melissa McDermeit, Rodney Funk and Michael Dennis
Name:Merging Files: Adding Variables or Cases
Description:To show by example how to add new variables or new records to an existing data file and check the results
Date:1/10/2007
 
File Name: Matching_Files.pdf
File Version: 1/07
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 569 K


Author:Rodney Funk, Melissa Ives and Michael L. Dennis
Name:Reliability: Calculating Cronbach's Alpha
Description:While the SPSS Reliability command provides multiple options and models, this memo presents the typical format for obtaining and using Cronbach’s alpha and other statistics to assess a scale and its component items.
Date:4/23/2007
 
File Name: Alpha.pdf
File Version: 4/07
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 76 K


Author:Melissa Ives, Rodney Funk, Michael L. Dennis, and Pamela Ihnes
Name:Repeated Measures Analysis
Description:Repeated measures analyses are used when several measures of the same variable (e.g. an outcome) are taken across different levels of a factor—(e.g. time). Repeated measures are used to assess dependent measure changes from baseline across multiple follow-up waves, controlling for various respondent characteristics.
Date:10/11/2010
 
File Name: RepeatMeas.pdf
File Version: 10/10
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 349 K


Author:Melissa Ives, Rodney Funk and Michael L. Dennis
Name:Survival Analysis/Life Tables
Description:Survival analysis, including Life Tables and Hazard analysis, is a way of examining the time to an event (e.g., discharge, admission/readmission, symptom onset, task completion, death) for one or more groups.
Date:4/23/2007
 
File Name: Survival_Analysis.pdf
File Version: 4/07
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 91 K


Author:Melissa Ives, Rodney Funk and Michael L. Dennis
Name:Tukey Box Plots
Description:Explains how Tukey box can create a graphic image of the several key measures of distribution, including the minimum, maximum, median, and 25th and 75th percentiles (the middle 50%).
Date:4/23/2007
 
File Name: TukeyBox.pdf
File Version: 4/07
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 83 K


Author:Melissa Ives, Janet C. Titus, Rodney Funk, Michael L. Dennis, Kathryn C. Modisette, & Pamela Ihnes
Name:Using propensity score to create an equivalent comparison group
Description:To reduce the impact of unbalanced sample sizes or significant baseline differences, a control group’s responses may be weighted via propensity scores predicting membership in the treatment group, thus producing groups with equal sample sizes and similar characteristics. This memo discusses the process, output, and description of calculating a propensity score to balance the treatment and comparison groups.
Date:4/15/2011
 
File Name: Propensity.pdf
File Version: 4/11
File Format: Adobe
File Size: 55 K