Eldad Davidov Eldad Davidov is professor of sociology at the University of Zurich and vice-president of the European Survey Research Association (ESRA). His research interests concentrate on structural equation modeling especially applied to cross-country and longitudinal survey data. In his applications he analyzes human values and attitudes toward immigrants or other minorities.
Peter Schmidt is Professor emeritus of social science methodology at the University of Giessen. His research concentrates on foundations and applications of generalized latent variable models especially structural equation models. Applications include cross-country, repeated cross-sections and panel data. The substantive topics deal with values, attitudes toward minorities, national identity and innovation.He is together with A.Heath, E.Green, E.Davidov and A.Ramos member of the Question design team for the immigration module of the ESS 2014.
The workshop will show how a causal theory can be represented by a path diagram and translated into a structural equation model and how the model can be estimated and tested with the AMOS computer program. In the first part we will deal with measurement models relating single or multiple indicators to latent variables. Furthermore, different specifications of measurement models are tested via confirmatory factor analysis as a special case of a structural equation model. The second part comprises both the structural and the measurement model. Topics include treatment of cross-cultural data with multiple-group modeling, MIMIC models, moderation and mediation, and missing values. Special attention is given to the process of model modification. We strongly recommend participants to bring data with them, particularly if they apply survey data. Time will be dedicated for consultation on Thursday afternoon, and some participants will have the opportunity to present their models on Friday, discuss problems they had faced and ask other participants and the teachers for possible solutions.
The objective of this course is to show how structural equation modeling can be used to develop and/or test both measurement models and causal theories between latent variables with survey data. A further important aim is to familiarize participants with the AMOS program. The program will be run by graphical input via path diagrams (AMOS Graphics).