Structural Equation Modeling and Test Validation

The use of structural equation modeling in validity research is described and demonstrated in the context of an example wherein a researcher is providing construct and predictive validity evidence for inferences made from scores on the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scale. In this light, current concepts of validity are briefly overviewed and contrasted with those found in many research methods texts. In addition, two special cases of the generalized linear structural equation model, confirmatory factor analysis and multiple indicators multiple causes models for ordinal items, that are particularly well suited for measurement validity research, are introduced. Keywords: structural equation model; ordinal variables; validity; predictive validity; construct validity; lisrel

[1]  Bengt Muthén,et al.  A Method for Studying the Homogeneity of Test Items with Respect to Other Relevant Variables , 1985 .

[2]  B. Muthén.  Latent variable modeling in heterogeneous populations , 1989 .

[3]  K. Jöreskog,et al.  Factor Analysis of Ordinal Variables: A Comparison of Three Approaches , 2001, Multivariate behavioral research.

[4]  S. Messick.  Test Validity: A Matter of Consequence , 1998 .

[5]  R. Hambleton,et al.  Adapting Tests for Use in Multiple Languages and Cultures , 1998 .

[6]  M. Kane.  Current Concerns in Validity Theory , 2001 .

[7]  Karl G. Jöreskog,et al.  Structural equation modeling with ordinal variables , 1994 .

[8]  B. Plake,et al.  A Historical Comparison of Validity Standards and Validity Practices , 1998 .

[9]  Bengt Muthen,et al.  Some uses of structural equation modeling in validity studies: Extending IRT to external variables , 1986 .

[10]  B. Zumbo,et al.  A Dialectic on Validity: Where We Have Been and Where We Are Going , 1996 .

[11]  A. Goldberger,et al.  Estimation of a Model with Multiple Indicators and Multiple Causes of a Single Latent Variable , 1975 .

[12]  Irene R. R. Lu,et al.  Embedding IRT in Structural Equation Models: A Comparison With Regression Based on IRT Scores , 2005 .

[13]  K. Jöreskog,et al.  Factor Models for Ordinal Variables With Covariate Effects on the Manifest and Latent Variables: A Comparison of LISREL and IRT Approaches , 2004 .

[14]  S. Sireci.  The Construct of Content Validity , 1998 .

[15]  B. Zumbo.  Opening Remarks to the Special Issue on Validity Theory and the Methods Used in Validation: Perspectives from the Social and Behavioral Sciences , 1998 .

[16]  S. Messick.  Validity of Psychological Assessment: Validation of Inferences from Persons' Responses and Performances as Scientific Inquiry into Score Meaning. Research Report RR-94-45. , 1994 .