Build a candidate direct-anchor table from fitted estimates

Usage

make_anchor_table(
  fit,
  facets = NULL,
  include_person = FALSE,
  digits = 6,
  readiness_policy = c("error", "review")
)

Arguments

fit: Output from fit_mfrm().
facets: Optional subset of facets to include.
include_person: Include person estimates as candidate anchors. Use only when cross-run person identity and the intended longitudinal constraint are substantively justified.
digits: Rounding digits for anchor values.
readiness_policy: How a source fit that is not inference-ready is handled. "error" (default) refuses anchor export or reuse. "review" permits explicit review-only extraction; those values must not be used as operational anchors.

Value

A data.frame with Facet, Level, and Anchor.

Details

This function performs a mechanical conversion from fitted estimates to the Facet/Level/Anchor schema accepted by fit_mfrm(). The returned rows are candidate direct constraints, not an approved anchor set.

By default, the function refuses export when the source fit is not inference-ready under the current readiness contract. Set readiness_policy = "review" only to inspect candidate values; this does not make them eligible for reuse. The function cannot verify cross-run element identity or invariance. Before reuse, document why selected elements retain the same meaning, check the observed design's connectedness, and run review_mfrm_anchors() on the receiving data. That review checks schema and receiving-data support; it does not validate the source fit or the substantive invariance assumption.

The digits parameter controls rounding precision. Use at least 4 digits for research applications; excessive rounding (e.g., 1 digit) can introduce avoidable calibration error.

Interpreting output

Facet: facet name to be anchored in later runs.
Level: specific element/level name inside that facet.
Anchor: fixed logit value (rounded by digits).

Typical workflow

Fit and diagnose a defensible reference run with fit_mfrm().
Confirm source readiness, element identity, and the intended link.
Export candidates with make_anchor_table(fit) and review them.
Pass selected rows back into fit_mfrm(..., anchors = ...).

Examples

toy <- load_mfrmr_data("example_operational")
fit <- fit_mfrm(
  toy, "Person", c("Rater", "Criterion"), "Score",
  method = "MML", quad_points = 7, maxit = 30
)
anchors_tbl <- make_anchor_table(fit)
head(anchors_tbl)
#> # A tibble: 6 × 3
#>   Facet     Level        Anchor
#>   <chr>     <chr>         <dbl>
#> 1 Criterion Content      -0.339
#> 2 Criterion Language      0.118
#> 3 Criterion Organization  0.221
#> 4 Rater     R01          -0.597
#> 5 Rater     R02          -0.334
#> 6 Rater     R03           0.259
summary(anchors_tbl$Anchor)
#>    Min. 1st Qu.  Median    Mean 3rd Qu.    Max. 
#> -0.5968 -0.3339  0.1349  0.0000  0.2207  0.3678