Modeling intraindividual means and variances from ecological momentary assessment data: comparing standard computational formulas to mixed-effects location-scale model estimates.

Traditionally, intraindividual means and variances derived from ecological momentary assessment (EMA) data have been calculated using standard computational formulas (SCF), such as subject-level means and standard deviations. However, these SCF methods assume uniform precision across subjects, disre...

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Publicado en:Journal of Behavioral Medicine Vol. 49; no. 2; pp. 254 - 275
Autores principales: Wang, Wei-Lin, Yang, Chih-Hsiang, Nordgren, Rachel, Li, Jixin, Intille, Stephen, Dunton, Genevieve F., Hedeker, Donald
Formato: equations & formulas research tables/charts Journal Article
Publicado: Springer Nature Apr2026
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
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      dt: Apr2026
      vid: 49
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      pub: Springer Nature
      place: New York, New York
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        10.1007/s10865-025-00628-0
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        atl: Modeling intraindividual means and variances from ecological momentary assessment data: comparing standard computational formulas to mixed-effects location-scale model estimates.
      aug:
        au:
          Wang, Wei-Lin
          Yang, Chih-Hsiang
          Nordgren, Rachel
          Li, Jixin
          Intille, Stephen
          Dunton, Genevieve F.
          Hedeker, Donald
        affil: https://ror.org/03taz7m60 Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, University of Southern California, 1845 N. Soto St., 90032, Los Angeles, CA, USA
      sug:
        subj:
          Models, Statistical
          Computer Simulation
          Psychological Tests
          Data Analysis, Statistical Methods
          Decision Support Techniques
          Human
          Simulations
          Comparative Studies
          Multivariate Analysis
          Methodological Research
          Prospective Studies
          Descriptive Statistics
          Data Analysis Software
          Confidence Intervals
          Software
          Bias (Research)
          Reproducibility of Results
          Regression
          Health Behavior
          Variance Analysis
          Affect
      ab: Traditionally, intraindividual means and variances derived from ecological momentary assessment (EMA) data have been calculated using standard computational formulas (SCF), such as subject-level means and standard deviations. However, these SCF methods assume uniform precision across subjects, disregarding variation in the number of observations, missing data issues, and the non-continuous nature of data scales. This study evaluated the predictive accuracy of the coefficients of intraindividual means and variances computed via SCF against those estimated using random effects from a Mixed-Effects Location Scale (MELS) model. A five-scenario simulation study was conducted: (1) varying numbers of observations per subject, (2) varying mean-to-variance ratios, (3) varying proportions of missing data under a missing completely at random (MCAR) assumption, (4) varying proportions of missing data under a missing at random (MAR) assumption, and (5) varying categories of ordinal scale responses. Bias and coverage of the mean levels and variability coefficients were compared across methods. In addition, a real-life dataset was used to compare the difference of means and variances between SCF and MELS approaches. Results consistently showed that the MELS model approach outperformed SCF method, yielding lower bias and higher coverage of the coefficients across all scenarios. These findings support the use of MELS for more accurate and reliable estimation of intraindividual means and variances in EMA data, highlighting its advantages for subsequent predictive modeling.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype:
        equations & formulas
        research
        tables/charts
        Journal Article
      ougenre: Article
    language: English
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