Dynamic p-technique for modeling patterns of data: applications to pediatric psychology research.

OBJECTIVE Dynamic p-technique (DPT) is a potentially useful statistical method for examining relationships among dynamic constructs in a single individual or small group of individuals over time. The purpose of this article is to offer a nontechnical introduction to DPT. METHOD An overview of DPT analysis, with an emphasis on potential applications to pediatric psychology research, is provided. To illustrate how DPT might be applied, an example using simulated data is presented for daily pain and negative mood ratings. RESULTS The simulated example demonstrates the application of DPT to a relevant pediatric psychology research area. In addition, the potential application of DPT to the longitudinal study of adherence is presented. CONCLUSION Although it has not been utilized frequently within pediatric psychology, DPT could be particularly well-suited for research in this field because of its ability to powerfully model repeated observations from very small samples.