Structural Equation Modeling

In.Chapter.11.the.basic.concepts.underlying.the.theory.and.application.of.confirmatory. factor.analysis.(CFA).were.reviewed..In.simple.terms,.structural.equation.modeling.(SEM;. also.referred.to.as.covariance.structure.modeling,.latent.variable.modeling,.or.causal.modeling).can.be.thought.of.as.an.extension.of.CFA.that.permits.the.specification.and.testing. of.a.much.broader.range.of.factor.analytic.models..Recall.that.CFA.involves.specifying.(a. priori).models.in.which.unobservable.underlying.factors.are.postulated.to.influence.a.set. of.observed.variables..Thus,.the.researcher.must.specify.the.number.of.underlying.factors. that.exist.and.which.observed.variables.a.particular.factor.will.be.permitted.to.influence.. The. researcher.also.must. specify.which. factors.will.be.permitted. to.correlate.with.one. another..SEM.extends.this.basic.methodology.to.allow.not.only.for.correlations.but.also. for.directional.relations.among.factors..That.is,.a.researcher.can.specify.models.in.which. factors.are.postulated.to.be.antecedents.or.consequences.of.other.factors.in.the.model. This.distinction.between.CFA.and.SEM.models.can.best.be.illustrated.by.examining.a.