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Journal of Pediatric Psychology, Vol. 27, No. 1, 2002, pp. 59-66
© 2002 Society of Pediatric Psychology

Contrasts and Correlations in Theory Assessment

Ralph L. Rosnow, PhD1 and Robert Rosenthal, PhD2

1 Temple University, 2 University of California, Riverside

All correspondence should be sent to Ralph L. Rosnow, 177 Biddulph Road, Radnor, Pennsylvania 19087-4506. E-mail: rosnow{at}temple.edu .

Objective: To describe a systematic quantitative approach to assessing the predictions made by competing theories using contrasts and correlational indices of effect sizes.

Methods: We illustrate the use of the contrast F and t to compare and combine predictions when the raw data are continuous scores, and z contrasts when working with frequencies in 2 x k tables of counts.

Results: The traditional effect size correlation indicates the magnitude of the effect on individual scores of participants' assignment to particular conditions. The contrast correlation obtained from the contrast F or t is, in some cases, the easiest way of estimating the effect size correlation in designs using more than two groups. The alerting correlation is another way of appraising the predictive power of a contrast and can be used to compute the contrast F from published results when all we have are condition means and the omnibus F from an overall analysis of variance. Omnibus Fs, those with more than 1 df in the numerator, are rarely useful in data analytic work since they address unfocused questions, yielding only vague answers.

Conclusions: Asking focused questions using contrasts increases the clarity of our questions and the clarity and statistical power of our answers.

Key words: correlation; contrast correlation; theory assessment; effect size.


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