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AbstractMarsh and Scalas (2018) proposed a taxonomic structural equation modelling approach to test the individually importance weighted‐average models (IWAMs) in their article published in Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal 25: 137–158. As Marsh and Scalas (2018) pointed out, IWAMs could be found in many research areas, including self‐concept, job satisfaction and quality of life (QOL) research. Based on the findings of their proposed approach, Marsh and Scalas (2018) argued that importance weights do not make a difference. The purpose of this paper is to assess the applicability of the approach developed by Marsh and Scalas (2018) and their conclusion that importance weights do not make a difference in the area of QOL, specifically subjective well‐being, research. In the research area of QOL, IWAMs have been discussed often under the topic of domain importance weighting. Findings from an analysis of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics' Wellbeing and Daily Life Supplement data show that different domain importance weighting methods, based on different underlying (within‐domain vs between/across‐domain) perspectives, produced different results leading to different conclusions. Although the approach for testing IWAMs developed by Marsh and Scalas (2018) offered several methodological advances and strengths, its applicability to the evaluation of domain importance weighting in QOL studies is limited by its underlying (within‐domain) perspective, its assumption that domain importance can be accurately and precisely measured, and the possibility of the small effect size of domain importance. Marsh and Scalas' (2018) findings that importance weights do not make a difference should be interpreted with caution.

Objective: This article brings the discussions on incorporating perceived importance across study areas into the study of client satisfaction and cautions the use of multiplicative scores (multiplying satisfaction and importance scores) as a weighting method. An alternative weighting method is provided. Method: Analyze data from a client satisfaction survey of 103 clients of a publicly funded elderly case management service unit located in a large U.S. Midwest region city. Results: The alternative weighted score correlated higher with all the global client satisfaction measures than the multiplicative score. Conclusion: Using multiplicative scores to represent global client satisfaction should be avoided. The proposed alternative weighting method is a reasonable way to incorporate perceived importance to represent global client satisfaction.

Although client satisfaction has long been an important form of program evaluation, one of the major limitations regarding client satisfaction studies has been the inability to provide concrete feedback for service providers. This study describes the use of a client-centered approach to developing a client satisfaction measure for a case management setting, Client Satisfaction: Case Management (CSAT-CM). The CSAT-CM overcomes major limitations associated with prior client satisfaction studies and can be used to collect client satisfaction data that will provide concrete feedback for the service providers to improve their case management services. Preliminary results indicate that CSAT-CM has desirable psychometric properties. The proposed practical method of measuring client satisfaction has the potential to be adapted by other types of social service agencies.

The practice of giving certain life domains (such as health, family life) more weight in calculating an overall score, known as importance weighting, has been a subject of debate in subjective well-being (SWB) research for decades. In this paper, we present evidence by analyzing data from 513 Chinese adults to caution readers that findings of importance weighting in the SWB studies should be interpreted carefully. Given the many unsettled issues in assessing importance weighting, findings are often not clear-cut or definitive and overgeneralization can mislead our understanding of well-being. Future research on the topic of importance weighting should acknowledge study assumptions and limitations to avoid potential overgeneralization of findings.

The criminal justice system has come to rely on a batterer intervention program (BIP) in sentences for domestic violence offenders, but BIPs suffer from a reputation problem, with both completion and reoffense rates hovering around 50%. The role of social class in battering and in legally mandated BIPs, although indirectly referenced in most studies, is rarely examined as an explanatory factor. This article discusses the results of a study of 540 men arrested for domestic violence and sentenced to a BIP. Results suggest that social class is a significant predictor of program completion, with program completion for those categorized as overclass being twice those categorized as underclass. The authors discuss implications for community and criminal justice response to domestic violence.