Talk by Prof. Stefan Th. Gries at the RTG
Insights from Prof. Stefan Th. Gries’ Visit to the RTG Dimensions of Constructional Space: Exploring Mixed Effects Modeling
Our Research Training Group Dimensions of Constructional Space was privileged to host Prof. Stefan Th. Gries for a series of workshops and talks. His insightful introduction to mixed effects modeling took place on the 20th to 22nd of June.
During a workshop on Tuesday and Wednesday, Prof. Gries explained some of the reasons for using mixed effects modeling and described the process of model selection, starting with a comprehensive initial model that is then refined to the optimal version. He emphasized the significance of plotting model diagnostics and reporting model summaries such as R-squared, precision, recall, and the C-score when presenting the model in publications.
In the second session on the 21st, Prof. Gries discussed some of the characteristics of qualitative and quantitative analysis and argued against common objections to quantitative analysis. He noted the comprehensive perspective offered by quantitative analysis through the inclusion of random effects and interactions.
The final talk, titled On Rankings/Thresholds, Conflation, & Levels of Resolution in Corpus Linguistics: Some ‘Warnings’ was dedicated to discussing potential pitfalls of some of the measures used in corpus linguistics. Prof. Gries cautioned about quantitative measures that conflate different aspects, such as frequency and association. He underscored the importance of considering the ranges of possible values and providing uncertainty intervals. Moreover, he underlined the necessity of accounting for lower-level effects whenever higher-level effects are considered.
In summary, Prof. Gries’ visit was an enlightening experience, providing us with a better understanding of mixed effects modeling and critical considerations about (corpus) studies. His valuable insights will undoubtedly guide our future research endeavors.