Lin, P. Y., & Lin, Y. C. (2014). Examining student factors in sources of setting accommodation DIF . Educational and Psychological Measurement , 74 (5), 759–794. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164413514053

The researchers used the term "setting accommodation" to refer to a low-distraction environment.

Student performance data in mathematics and reading were drawn from grade 6 students with learning disabilities and students without disabilities in Ontario (Canada). Data were not included for students who took the French versions of the tests, or were missing any information as to accommodations, disability status, or native or home language.

Ontario's provincial assessment data for grade 6 mathematics (28 items) and reading (32 items) in 2005 and 2006 were analyzed.

The factors affecting differential item functioning (DIF) included accommodation status—specifically low-distraction setting—as well as gender, test-taker latent abilities, attitudes toward learning reading and math, and home languages, and the interaction among these factors. The latent class analyses (LCA) approach using multiple covariates was demonstrated to yield better fits to the observed data. The researchers showed that receiving setting accommodation was associated with being male, speaking a language other than English at home, and had less positive attitudes toward learning reading and math, in addition to latent abilities. Future research directions were suggested.