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Multilevel Measurement of Dimensions of Collaborative Functioning in a Network of Collaboratives that Promote Child and Family Well-Being

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American Journal of Community Psychology

Abstract

Evaluating collaboration between community partners presents a series of methodological challenges (Roussos and Fawcett in Annu Rev Public Health 21:369–402, 2000; Yin and Kaftarian 1997), one of which is selection of the appropriate level of analysis. When data are collected from multiple members of multiple settings, multilevel analysis techniques should be used. Multilevel confirmatory factor analysis (MCFA) is an analytic approach that incorporates the advantages of latent variable measurement modeling and multilevel modeling for nested data. This study utilizes MCFA on data obtained from an evaluation survey of collaborative functioning provided to members of 157 community collaboratives in Georgia. This study presents a well-fitting measurement model that includes five dimensions of collaborative functioning, and a structural component with individual- and collaborative-level covariates. Findings suggest that members’ role and meeting attendance significantly predicted their assessment of collaboration at the individual level, and that tenure of collaborative leaders predicted the overall functioning of the collaborative at the collaborative level. Dimensionality of collaborative functioning and implications of potentially substantial measurement biases associated with selection of respondents are addressed.

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Author notes

  1. John P. Barile

    Present address: Division of Adult and Community Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 4770 Buford Highway, NE, Mailstop K51, Atlanta, GA, 30331-3717, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, USA

    John P. Barile

  2. EMSTAR Research, Inc., Atlanta, GA, USA

    Adam J. Darnell & Steve W. Erickson

  3. Institute of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Scott R. Weaver

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  1. John P. Barile
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  2. Adam J. Darnell
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Correspondence to John P. Barile.

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Barile, J.P., Darnell, A.J., Erickson, S.W. et al. Multilevel Measurement of Dimensions of Collaborative Functioning in a Network of Collaboratives that Promote Child and Family Well-Being. Am J Community Psychol 49, 270–282 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10464-011-9455-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10464-011-9455-9

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