Eldad Davidov/Peter Schmidt
Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) I
Eldad Davidov is professor of sociology at the Universities of Cologne and Zurich. He was president of the European Survey Research Association (ESRA) between 2015 and 2017. His research interests concentrate on structural equation modeling especially applied to cross-cultural and longitudinal survey data. In his research 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.
Objectives
The objective of this course is to show how structural equation modeling can be used to develop and/or test both measurement models (scales) and causal theories between latent variables with survey data. When discussing full structural equation modeling, we will treat formative and reflective indicators, mediation, indirect effects and moderation. 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). A special focus will be given to the analysis of comparative data across groups.
Prerequisites
Some experience with regression analysis techniques is required. A basic knowledge of factor analysis is recommended.
Bibliography
Basic texts/overview
- Arbuckle, J.L. (2017): AMOS 25.0 User's Guide. Chicago: SPSS/Erlbaum.
- Brown, Timothy, A. (2015). Confirmatory Factor Analysis for Applied Research. New York: Guilford
- Byrne, Barbara M. (2016): Structural equation modeling with AMOS. Basic concepts, application, and programming. 3rd Edition. Ney York: Routledge.
- Davidov, E., P. Schmidt, J. Billiet and B. Meuleman (eds.) (2018). Cross-cultural analysis: Methods and applications. Second edition. NY: Routledge.
- Kline, R. B. (2016). Principles and Practice of Structural Equation Modeling. Fourth edition. Guilford Press: New York.
Reading
- Cieciuch, J., E. Davidov, P. Schmidt and R. Algesheimer (2016). The assessment of cross-cultural comparability. Pp. 630-648 in: C. Wolf, D. Joye, T. W. Smith & Y.-C. Fu (eds.), The Sage Handbook in Survey Methodology. New York: Sage.
- Davidov, E., J. Cieciuch, B. Meuleman, P. Schmidt and J. Billiet (2014). Measurement equivalence in cross-national research. Annual Review of Sociology, 40, 55-75
- Davidov, Schmidt and Schwartz (2008). Bringing values back in: the adequacy of the European social survey to measure values in 20 countries. Public opinion quarterly, 72, 420-445.
- Davidov, Meuleman, Billiet and Schmidt (2008). Values and support for immigration: a cross-country comparison. European sociological review, 24, 583-599.
- Davidov, E., D. Seddig, A. Gorodzeisky, R. Raijman, P. Schmidt and M. Semyonov. Direct and indirect predictors of opposition to immigration in Europe: Individual values, cultural values, and symbolic threat (in press).
Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies. DOI:10.1080/1369183X.2018.1550152.