Summary
Contents
A statistical method that will appeal to two groups in particular - those who are currently using the more traditional technique of exploratory factor analysis and those who are interested in the analysis of covariance structures, commonly known as the LISREL model. The first group will find that this technique may be more appropriate to the analysis of their research problems while the second group will find that confirmatory factor analysis is a useful first step to understanding the LISREL model. The proofs presented are simple, but the reader must feel comfortable with matrix algebra in order to understand the model.
Estimation of the Confirmatory Factor Model
Estimation of the Confirmatory Factor Model
After identification has been established, estimation can proceed. The general objective in estimating the factor model is to find estimates of the parameters that reproduce the sample matrix of variances and covariances of the observed variables as closely as possible in some well-defined sense. In this chapter several methods of estimation are presented. While a formal statistical justification of these methods is beyond the scope of this monograph, it is possible to present the general characteristics of each method. For technical details, see Browne, (1974), Jöreskog and Goldberger (1972), Bentler and Bonett (1980), and the literature cited therein.
The researcher begins with a sample of observed data. From the sample data it is possible to construct the sample covariance matrix ...