Hi Ülker,

mediation does not require a specific direction. If you have not yet collected the data, rather invest some effort to strengthen the support for what mediation really aims to express (=a causal chain).

Hence, understand the assumptions inherent in that chain:

https://www.researchgate.net/post/I_want_to_know_the_assumptions_of_multiple_mediation_analysis_with_AMOS_output_Can_someone_give_any_guidelines

A causal identification strategy should involve

a) thinking about potential confounders (i.e., common causes) of the X-Y, M-Y, and X-M relationships (sounds complicated but will often involve the same candidates)

b) thinking about potential instruments for X and M

Best,

Holger

Holger Steinmetz , thank you very much. I haven't gathered the data yet. This will be very helpful.

@Dikmen Yes absolutely you can check for mediation even when X and Y are negatively correlated.