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Full-Text Articles in Statistics and Probability

Identification And Description Of Potentially Influential Social Network Members Using The Strategic Player Approach, Miles Q. Ott, Sara G. Balestrieri, Graham Diguiseppi, Melissa A. Clark, Michael Bernstein, Sarah Helseth, Nancy P. Barnett Mar 2020

Identification And Description Of Potentially Influential Social Network Members Using The Strategic Player Approach, Miles Q. Ott, Sara G. Balestrieri, Graham Diguiseppi, Melissa A. Clark, Michael Bernstein, Sarah Helseth, Nancy P. Barnett

Statistical and Data Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background: Diffusion of innovations theory posits that ideas and behaviors can be spread through social network ties. In intervention work, intervening upon certain network members may lead to intervention effects “diffusing” into the network to affect the behavior of network members who did not receive the intervention. The strategic players (SP) method, an extension of Borgatti’s Key Players approach, is used to balance the (sometimes) opposing goals of spreading the intervention to as many members of the target group as possible, while preventing the spread of the intervention to others. Objectives: We sought to test whether members of the SP …


Do Misperceptions Of Peer Drinking Influence Personal Drinking Behavior? Results From A Complete Social Network Of First-Year College Students, Melissa J. Cox, Angelo M. Dibello, Matthew K. Meisel, Miles Q. Ott, Shannon R. Kenney, Melissa A. Clark, Nancy P. Barnett May 2019

Do Misperceptions Of Peer Drinking Influence Personal Drinking Behavior? Results From A Complete Social Network Of First-Year College Students, Melissa J. Cox, Angelo M. Dibello, Matthew K. Meisel, Miles Q. Ott, Shannon R. Kenney, Melissa A. Clark, Nancy P. Barnett

Statistical and Data Sciences: Faculty Publications

This study considered the influence of misperceptions of typical versus self-identified important peers' heavy drinking on personal heavy drinking intentions and frequency utilizing data from a complete social network of college students. The study sample included data from 1,313 students (44% male, 57% White, 15% Hispanic/Latinx) collected during the fall and spring semesters of their freshman year. Students provided perceived heavy drinking frequency for a typical student peer and up to 10 identified important peers. Personal past-month heavy drinking frequency was assessed for all participants at both time points. By comparing actual with perceived heavy drinking frequencies, measures of misperceptions …


Fixed Choice Design And Augmented Fixed Choice Design For Network Data With Missing Observations, Miles Q. Ott, Matthew T. Harrison, Krista J. Gile, Nancy P. Barnett, Joseph W. Hogan Jan 2019

Fixed Choice Design And Augmented Fixed Choice Design For Network Data With Missing Observations, Miles Q. Ott, Matthew T. Harrison, Krista J. Gile, Nancy P. Barnett, Joseph W. Hogan

Statistical and Data Sciences: Faculty Publications

The statistical analysis of social networks is increasingly used to understand social processes and patterns. The association between social relationships and individual behaviors is of particular interest to sociologists, psychologists, and public health researchers. Several recent network studies make use of the fixed choice design (FCD), which induces missing edges in the network data. Because of the complex dependence structure inherent in networks, missing data can pose very difficult problems for valid statistical inference. In this article, we introduce novel methods for accounting for the FCD censoring and introduce a new survey design, which we call the augmented fixed choice …


Enrollment And Assessment Of A First-Year College Class Social Network For A Controlled Trial Of The Indirect Effect Of A Brief Motivational Intervention, Nancy P. Barnett, Melissa A. Clark, Shannon R. Kenney, Graham Diguiseppi, Matthew K. Meisel, Sara Balestrieri, Miles Q. Ott, John Light Jan 2019

Enrollment And Assessment Of A First-Year College Class Social Network For A Controlled Trial Of The Indirect Effect Of A Brief Motivational Intervention, Nancy P. Barnett, Melissa A. Clark, Shannon R. Kenney, Graham Diguiseppi, Matthew K. Meisel, Sara Balestrieri, Miles Q. Ott, John Light

Statistical and Data Sciences: Faculty Publications

Heavy drinking and its consequences among college students represent a serious public health problem, and peer social networks are a robust predictor of drinking-related risk behaviors. In a recent trial, we administered a Brief Motivational Intervention (BMI) to a small number of first-year college students to assess the indirect effects of the intervention on peers not receiving the intervention. Objectives: To present the research design, describe the methods used to successfully enroll a high proportion of a first-year college class network, and document participant characteristics. Methods: Prior to study enrollment, we consulted with a student advisory group and campus stakeholders …


Alcohol Perceptions And Behavior In A Residential Peer Social Network, Shannon R. Kenney, Miles Q. Ott, Matthew Meisel, Nancy P. Barnett Jan 2017

Alcohol Perceptions And Behavior In A Residential Peer Social Network, Shannon R. Kenney, Miles Q. Ott, Matthew Meisel, Nancy P. Barnett

Statistical and Data Sciences: Faculty Publications

Personalized normative feedback is a recommended component of alcohol interventions targeting college students. However, normative data are commonly collected through campus-based surveys, not through actual participant-referent relationships. In the present investigation, we examined how misperceptions of residence hall peers, both overall using a global question and those designated as important peers using person-specific questions, were related to students’ personal drinking behaviors. Participants were 108 students (88% freshman, 54% White, 51% female) residing in a single campus residence hall. Participants completed an online baseline survey in which they reported their own alcohol use and perceptions of peer alcohol use using both …