Example Analyses (from Appendix I)

Purpose

Appendix I of the book seeks to give the reader some experience with the process of structural equation modeling. The exercises included in the Appendix serve to provide some examples of analyses, including how to translate questions into models and how to interpret output and create revised models.

It is important for the reader to realize that there are really two different things to learn, SEM and SEM software. In Appendix I of the book, examples are presented in a "software free" format designed to illustrate principles. My purpose here is to provide those interested with the materials they need to run the examples for themselves.

Since folks will choose different software packages to use for SEM, I provide information from the Appendix examples in different formats. My personal recommendation for those just getting started is to use the free version of Amos and work through the tutorial and manual that comes with it. If you want to switch to another package after that, you will not have invested a huge amount of time in learning software and you will have learned a lot of practical information about SEM that will help you know what to do with the other packages. 

To get started with the Amos free version of the software and download the appropriate files for the examples, click here.

To get started with the Mplus free version of the software and download the appropriate files for the examples, click here.

For those who want to use R, I recommend working from the Amos example material, since it is more explicit regarding model specification.