Assessing Standard Error Estimation Approaches for Robust Mean-Geometric Mean Linking

Robust mean-geometric mean (MGM) linking methods enable reliable group comparisons in item response theory models under fixed and sparse differential item functioning. This article evaluates six alternative standard error and confidence interval (CI) estimation methods across four MGM linking approaches. Our Simulation Study demonstrates that CIs based on the delta method or bootstrap procedures using the normal distribution or empirical quantiles exhibit highly inflated coverage rates. In contrast, CIs derived from a weighted least squares estimation problem, as well as basic and bias-corrected bootstrap methods, yield satisfactory coverage rates in most simulation conditions for robust MGM linking.