MethodsX (Jan 2022)
Conceptual comparison of constructs as first step in data harmonization: Parental sensitivity, child temperament, and social support as illustrations
- Marije L. Verhage,
- Carlo Schuengel,
- Annaleena Holopainen,
- Marian J. Bakermans-Kranenburg,
- Annie Bernier,
- Geoffrey L. Brown,
- Sheri Madigan,
- Glenn I. Roisman,
- Mette S. Vaever,
- Maria S. Wong,
- Marian J. Bakermans-Kranenburg,
- Lavinia Barone,
- Kazuko Y. Behrens,
- Johanna Behringer,
- Annie Bernier,
- Ina Bovenschen,
- Geoffrey L. Brown,
- Rosalinda Cassibba,
- Jude Cassidy,
- Gabrielle Coppola,
- Alessandro Costantini,
- Mary Dozier,
- Karin Ensink,
- R. M. Pasco Fearon,
- Brent Finger,
- Airi Hautamaki,
- Nancy L. Hazen,
- Elena Ierardi,
- Inês Jongenelen,
- Simo Køppe,
- Francesca Lionetti,
- Sheri Madigan,
- Sarah Mangelsdorf,
- Mirjam Oosterman,
- Cecilia S. Pace,
- K. Lee Raby,
- Cristina Riva Crugnola,
- Glenn I. Roisman,
- Carlo Schuengel,
- Alessandra Simonelli,
- Gottfried Spangler,
- George M. Tarabulsy,
- Mette S. Væver,
- Marije L. Verhage,
- Maria S. Wong,
- Bronia Arnott,
- Heidi Bailey,
- Patrick J. Brice,
- Karl-Heinz Brisch,
- Germana Castoro,
- Elisabetta Costantino,
- Chantal Cyr,
- Carol George,
- Gabriele Gloger-Tippelt,
- Sonia Gojman,
- Susanne Harder,
- Carollee Howes,
- Heidi Jacobsen,
- Deborah Jacobvitz,
- Mi Kyoung Jin,
- Femmie Juffer,
- Miyuki Kazui,
- Esther M. Leerkes,
- Karlen Lyons-Ruth,
- Catherine McMahon,
- Elizabeth Meins,
- Salvador Millán,
- Lynne Murray,
- Katja Nowacki,
- David R. Pederson,
- Lynn Priddis,
- Avi Sagi-Schwartz,
- Sarah J. Schoppe-Sullivan,
- Judith Solomon,
- Anna Maria Speranza,
- Miriam Steele,
- Howard Steele,
- Doug M. Teti,
- Marinus H. van IJzendoorn,
- W. Monique van Londen-Barentsen,
- Mary J. Ward
Affiliations
- Marije L. Verhage
- Clinical Child and Family Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Corresponding author.
- Carlo Schuengel
- Clinical Child and Family Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Annaleena Holopainen
- Clinical Child and Family Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Marian J. Bakermans-Kranenburg
- Clinical Child and Family Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Annie Bernier
- Department of Psychology, University of Montréal, Canada
- Geoffrey L. Brown
- Human Development and Family Science, University of Georgia, USA
- Sheri Madigan
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Canada; Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Glenn I. Roisman
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, USA
- Mette S. Vaever
- Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
- Maria S. Wong
- Endicott College, Beverly, MA, USA
- Marian J. Bakermans-Kranenburg
- Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Lavinia Barone
- University of Pavia, Italy
- Kazuko Y. Behrens
- SUNY Polytechnic Institute, Utica, NY
- Johanna Behringer
- Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany
- Annie Bernier
- University of Montréal, Canada
- Ina Bovenschen
- University of Erlangen - Nuremberg, Germany
- Geoffrey L. Brown
- University of Georgia, GA
- Rosalinda Cassibba
- University of Bari Aldo Moro, Italy
- Jude Cassidy
- University of Maryland, College Park, MD
- Gabrielle Coppola
- University of Bari Aldo Moro, Italy
- Alessandro Costantini
- University of Bari Aldo Moro, Italy
- Mary Dozier
- University of Delaware, Newark, DE
- Karin Ensink
- Université Laval, Quebec City, Canada
- R. M. Pasco Fearon
- University College London, UK
- Brent Finger
- Montana State University Billings, MT
- Airi Hautamaki
- University of Helsinki, Finland
- Nancy L. Hazen
- University of Texas at Austin, TX
- Elena Ierardi
- University of Milano-Bicocca, Italy
- Inês Jongenelen
- Universidade Lusófona do Porto, Portugal
- Simo Køppe
- University of Copenhagen, Denmark
- Francesca Lionetti
- d'Annunzio University of Chieti-Pescara, Italy and Queen Mary University of London, UK
- Sheri Madigan
- University of Calgary and the Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Calgary, Canada
- Sarah Mangelsdorf
- University of Wisconsin-Madison, WI
- Mirjam Oosterman
- Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Cecilia S. Pace
- University of Genoa, Italy
- K. Lee Raby
- University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT
- Cristina Riva Crugnola
- University of Milano-Bicocca, Italy
- Glenn I. Roisman
- University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
- Carlo Schuengel
- Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Alessandra Simonelli
- University of Padova, Italy
- Gottfried Spangler
- University of Erlangen - Nuremberg, Germany
- George M. Tarabulsy
- Université Laval, Quebec City, Canada
- Mette S. Væver
- University of Copenhagen, Denmark
- Marije L. Verhage
- Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Maria S. Wong
- Endicott College, MA.
- Bronia Arnott
- Newcastle University, UK
- Heidi Bailey
- University of Guelph, Canada
- Patrick J. Brice
- Gallaudet University, Washington, DC
- Karl-Heinz Brisch
- Paracelsus Medical School, Salzburg, Austria
- Germana Castoro
- University of Bari ''Aldo Moro'', Italy
- Elisabetta Costantino
- University of Milano-Bicocca, Italy
- Chantal Cyr
- Université du Québec à Montréal and CIUSSS Centre-Sud-de-l’île de Montréal, Canada
- Carol George
- Mills College, Oakland, CA
- Gabriele Gloger-Tippelt
- Ulm University Medical Center, Germany
- Sonia Gojman
- Research Center of the Seminario de Sociopsicoanálisis, Mexico City, Mexico
- Susanne Harder
- University of Copenhagen, Denmark
- Carollee Howes
- University of California at Los Angeles, CA
- Heidi Jacobsen
- Region Centre for Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Eastern and Southern Norway, Norway
- Deborah Jacobvitz
- University of Texas at Austin, TX
- Mi Kyoung Jin
- Soomkyung Women's University, Seoul, South Korea
- Femmie Juffer
- Leiden University, The Netherlands
- Miyuki Kazui
- Ibaraki University, Mito, Japan
- Esther M. Leerkes
- University of North Carolina at Greensboro, NC
- Karlen Lyons-Ruth
- Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA
- Catherine McMahon
- Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia
- Elizabeth Meins
- University of York, UK
- Salvador Millán
- Research Center of the Seminario de Siciopsicoanálisis, Mexico City, Mexico
- Lynne Murray
- University of Reading, UK
- Katja Nowacki
- Fachhochschule Dortmund, Germany
- David R. Pederson
- Western University, London, Ontario, Canada
- Lynn Priddis
- Edith Cowan University, Western Australia
- Avi Sagi-Schwartz
- University of Haifa, Israel
- Sarah J. Schoppe-Sullivan
- Ohio State University, Columbus, OH
- Judith Solomon
- Cambridge University School of Medicine, UK
- Anna Maria Speranza
- Sapienza University of Rome, Italy
- Miriam Steele
- The New School for Social Research, New York, NY
- Howard Steele
- The New School for Social Research, New York, NY
- Doug M. Teti
- The Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA
- Marinus H. van IJzendoorn
- Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- W. Monique van Londen-Barentsen
- Utrecht University, The Netherlands
- Mary J. Ward
- Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY
- Journal volume & issue
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Vol. 9
p. 101889
Abstract
This article presents a strategy for the initial step of data harmonization in Individual Participant Data syntheses, i.e., making decisions as to which measures operationalize the constructs of interest - and which do not. This step is vital in the process of data harmonization, because a study can only be as good as its measures. If the construct validity of the measures is in question, study results are questionable as well. Our proposed strategy for data harmonization consists of three steps. First, a unitary construct is defined based on the existing literature, preferably on the theoretical framework surrounding the construct. Second, the various instruments used to measure the construct are evaluated as operationalizations of this construct, and retained or excluded based on this evaluation. Third, the scores of the included measures are recoded on the same metric. We illustrate the use of this method with three example constructs focal to the Collaboration on Attachment Transmission Synthesis (CATS) study: parental sensitivity, child temperament, and social support. This process description may aid researchers in their data pooling studies, filling a gap in the literature on the first step of data harmonization. • Data harmonization in studies using combined datasets is of vital importance for the validity of the study results. • We have developed and illustrated a strategy on how to define a unitary construct and evaluate whether instruments are operationalizations of this construct as the initial step in the harmonization process. • This strategy is a transferable and reproducible method to apply to the data harmonization process.
