Using propensity score matching with doses in observational studies: An example from a child physical abuse and sleep quality study

Abstract

Both physical abuse and poor sleep quality are public health concerns among adolescents, particularly in mainland China, but examining any causal effect of physical abuse on adolescents’ sleep quality using a randomized controlled trial is not possible for obvious ethical reasons. Researchers have proposed the use of propensity score matching with doses to minimize overt bias and estimate the effect of multidose treatments or varying degrees of risk exposure in observational studies. In this paper, we demonstrate the propensity score methods with a focus on matching with doses in an examination of the relationship between physical abuse levels (frequency and number of perpetrators) and self‐reported sleep quality among adolescents. Secondary analyses were conducted using data from the China Jintan Child Cohort. The sample comprised 707 adolescents (13.16 ± 0.90 years old) who had complete data on physical abuse, sleep, and covariates. Propensity scores were computed from eight covariates and used to carry out pair matching, matching with the frequency of abusive experience, and matching with the number of perpetrators. The standardized differences of covariates suggested an acceptable balance between groups after matching. The results derived from matching sets consistently indicated that adolescents being physically abused by parent(s) have worse sleep quality. Despite its inherent limitations, propensity score matching with doses provides a useful tool for nurse researchers analyzing observational data.

Effect of extracurricular tutoring on adolescent students' cognitive ability: A Propensity Score Matching Analysis

“…The average treatment effect (ATT) of an intervention can be estimated based on the results of the PSM [34][35][36]. We estimated the ATT and standard errors using the results of the three matching methods.…”

Effect of extracurricular tutoring on adolescent students cognitive ability: A propensity score matching analysis

“…The ATT of an intervention can be estimated based on the results of the PSM. [45][46][47] We estimated the ATT and standard errors using the results of the 3 matching methods. After PSM, adolescent students who participated in extracurricular tutoring (treatment group) had distinctly higher levels of cognitive ability than those who did not.…”

Efficacy and Safety of Sacubitril/Valsartan Therapy for Acute Decompensated Heart Failure with Reduced Ejection Fraction during the Vulnerable Phase: A Multicenter, Assessor-Blinded, Prospective, Observational, Cohort Study

“…With regard to baseline characteristics of eligible participants in both groups (Table 1), propensity score matching was used to identify cohorts of patients with similar baseline characteristics. The propensity score is a conditional probability of having a particular exposure (sacubitril/valsartan group vs. ACEI/ARB group) with a set of variables recorded at baseline [24, 25]. The propensity score was estimated using a nonparsimonious multivariable logistic regression model [26], with the sacubitril/valsartan group serving as a dependent variable; all baseline characteristics are outlined in Table 1.…”