{
  "abstract": "Large data repositories provide a valuable opportunity to combine multiple independent studies, creating large samples that can address questions not achievable within a single study. However, independent studies often use different instruments to measure the same behavior or psychological construct, such as cognitive ability, social functioning, or psychopathology. Investigators often combine samples that include different instruments under the assumption that instruments assessing the same construct capture the same underlying phenomenon. Yet this assumption of instrument interchangeability may be wrong. Collapsing different instruments into a single variable could introduce bias. Here, we established a quantitative method to demonstrate compatibility among multiple instruments with moderation analyses. We illustrate this method in domains of cognitive ability, anxiety symptoms, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms as exemplars that might interact with outcomes of interest (autistic features instruments). A total of 1,352 participants were included from autistic and non-autistic samples across 14 independent studies. Our findings suggest that within this sample, some commonly used instruments within a domain can be acceptably combined, whereas others demonstrate discrepant relationships with outcomes of interest. More importantly, we offer a generalizable approach for scientists seeking to leverage existing datasets for secondary analyses.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Center for Autism Research, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 2716 South Street, 5th Floor, Philadelphia, PA, 19146, USA.",
    "Department of Psychology, University of Maryland-College Park, College Park, MD, USA.",
    "Department of Radiology, Diffusion and Connectomics in Precision Healthcare Research Lab, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.",
    "Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA.",
    "Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.",
    "Department of Radiology, Program in Advanced Imaging Research and Lurie Family Foundations MEG Imaging Center, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA.",
    "Department of Radiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, PA, USA.",
    "Occupational Therapy Program in the Department of Kinesiology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA.",
    "Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA.",
    "Department of Psychology, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C., USA.",
    "Center for Autism Research, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 2716 South Street, 5th Floor, Philadelphia, PA, 19146, USA. yerysb@chop.edu.",
    "Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA. yerysb@chop.edu.",
    "Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA. yerysb@chop.edu.",
    "Advancing Transition and Learning for Adult Success Center, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, PA, Philadelphia, USA. yerysb@chop.edu."
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 11,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Erin Reckner",
      "orcid": "0009-0005-4875-1895"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Naveen Thourani"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Drew Parker"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        3,
        4
      ],
      "name": "John D Herrington",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-9720-3917"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5,
        6
      ],
      "name": "Timothy P L Roberts"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        3,
        4
      ],
      "name": "Robert T Schultz",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-9817-3425"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        7,
        8
      ],
      "name": "Brittany G Travers"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        9
      ],
      "name": "Chandan J Vaidya",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-8445-7475"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Ragini Verma"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        3,
        4
      ],
      "name": "Birkan Tunç",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-2294-4024"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        10,
        11,
        12,
        13
      ],
      "name": "Benjamin E Yerys",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-7370-0740"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/3wsmc70j752zb.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1007/s10802-026-01512-4",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13668954",
  "id": "3wsmc70j752zb",
  "issns": [
    "2730-7166",
    "2730-7174"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42873411",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "2805|Autism Spectrum Disorder Research"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7221747969",
  "pdf_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13668954?pdf=render",
  "pmcid": "PMC13668954",
  "pmid": "42873411",
  "published": "2026-10-14",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/3wsmc70j752zb.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:18:46Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42873411",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42873411"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "openalex:2805|Autism Spectrum Disorder Research",
      "subfield": "neuroscience"
    }
  ],
  "title": "To Collapse or not to Collapse Multiple Measures of the Same Psychological Construct: A Demonstration Across 14 Independent Studies of Autistic and Non-Autistic Children.",
  "title_text": "To Collapse or not to Collapse Multiple Measures of the Same Psychological Construct: A Demonstration Across 14 Independent Studies of Autistic and Non-Autistic Children.",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:18:46Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/3wsmc70j752zb",
  "venue": "Research on child and adolescent psychopathology",
  "versions": []
}