Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36622859›Full record

ArticleMultivariate behavioral research

A Causal Approach to Functional Mediation Analysis with Application to a Smoking Cessation Intervention.

Donna L Coffman, John J Dziak, Kaylee Litson, Yajnaseni Chakraborti, Megan E Piper, Runze Li

Open access · greenAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Multivariate behavioral research. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact, top 100% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 0 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. A systematic review of causal pathways of socioeconomic inequalities in stroke.International journal of stroke : official journal of the International Stroke Society · 2026
    Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Donna L CoffmanDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Temple University.ORCID 0000-0001-6305-6579
John J DziakEdna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center, The Pennsylvania State University.
Kaylee LitsonInstructional Technology & Learning Sciences Department, Utah State University.
Yajnaseni ChakrabortiDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Temple University.ORCID 0000-0002-6747-8821
Megan E PiperCenter for Tobacco Research Intervention, University of Wisconsin.
Runze LiDepartment of Statistics, The Pennsylvania State University.ORCID 0000-0002-0154-2202
Pennsylvania State University · USTemple University · USUtah State University · US

Funding

Pilot and Mentoring CoreP50DA054039 · NIDA · UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR · PI LINDA M COLLINS, SUSAN A MURPHY · 2021 to 2026
$18.2M
Pilot, Mentoring, and Professional Development CoreP50DA039838 · NIDA · PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY, THE · PI LI, RUNZE · 2015 to 2019
$13.9M
Novel Methods for Intensive Longitudinal Data in SMART Studies of Drug Abuse and HIVR01DA039901 · NIDA · UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR · PI ALMIRALL, DANIEL, NAHUM-SHANI, INBAL BILLIE · 2015 to 2024
$5.4M
Developing Methodology to examine causal mediation of Time-Varying Effects in Smoking Cessation TreatmentsR01CA229542 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA AT COLUMBIA · PI COFFMAN, DONNA LYNN · 2018 to 2021
$1.3M
NCI NIH HHS R01 CA229542NIDA NIH HHS P50 DA039838NIDA NIH HHS P50 DA054039NIDA NIH HHS R01 DA039901
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The increase in the use of mobile and wearable devices now allows dense assessment of mediating processes over time. For example, a pharmacological intervention may have an effect on smoking cessation via reductions in momentary withdrawal symptoms. We define and identify the causal direct and indirect effects in terms of potential outcomes on the mean difference and odds ratio scales, and present a method for estimating and testing the indirect effect of a randomized treatment on a distal binary variable as mediated by the nonparametric trajectory of an intensively measured longitudinal variable (e.g., from ecological momentary assessment). Coverage of a bootstrap test for the indirect effect is demonstrated via simulation. An empirical example is presented based on estimating later smoking abstinence from patterns of craving during smoking cessation treatment. We provide an R package, funmediation, available on CRAN at https://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/funmediation/index.html, to conveniently apply this technique. We conclude by discussing possible extensions to multiple mediators and directions for future research.

Indexed as

Smoking CessationSubstance Withdrawal SyndromeCravingHumansMediation AnalysisSmokingEcological momentary assessmentfunctional regressionindirect effectmediationsmokingtime-varying effect modeling

Identifiers

PMID36622859
PMCPMC10966971
OpenAlexW4226151740

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.