IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/somere/v15y1986i1-2p24-43.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Normalization Issues in Latent Variable Modeling

Author

Listed:
  • RICHARD WILLIAMS

    (University of Notre Dame)

  • ELIZABETH THOMSON

    (University of Wisconsin—Madison)

Abstract

Structural equation models with latent variables have been popular in the social sciences for some time. Recently such models have been used to make comparisons between groups, within dyads, and across time. However, possible problems with establishing meaningful metrics for unobservable variables in such situations are not universally known and acknowledged. It is shown that, when parameter comparisons are a central focus of the research, the method used to determine the metric of the latent variables (known as normalization) can dramatically and arbitrarily affect conclusions reached. The most commonly proposed solution to this problem, placing equality constraints on corresponding indicator coefficients, is discussed and critiqued. We argue that, in many cases, this approach is both statistically sound and substantively meaningful. We also note that there are several potential problems with this technique that should not be overlooked. Solutions and guidelines for dealing with each of these difficulties are presented.

Suggested Citation

  • Richard Williams & Elizabeth Thomson, 1986. "Normalization Issues in Latent Variable Modeling," Sociological Methods & Research, , vol. 15(1-2), pages 24-43, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:somere:v:15:y:1986:i:1-2:p:24-43
    DOI: 10.1177/0049124186015001002
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0049124186015001002
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/0049124186015001002?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Linda Beckman & Rhonda Aizenberg & Alan Forsythe & Tom Day, 1983. "A theoretical analysis of antecedents of young couples’ fertility decisions and outcomes," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 20(4), pages 519-533, November.
    2. Richard Williams & Elizabeth Thomson, 1985. "Can spouses be trusted? A look at husband/wife proxy reports," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 22(1), pages 115-123, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Adsera, Alicia, 2005. "Differences in Desired and Actual Fertility: An Economic Analysis of the Spanish Case," IZA Discussion Papers 1584, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Alicia Adsera, 2006. "An Economic Analysis of the Gap Between Desired and Actual Fertility: The Case of Spain," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 4(1), pages 75-95, March.
    3. Piotr Tarka, 2018. "An overview of structural equation modeling: its beginnings, historical development, usefulness and controversies in the social sciences," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 52(1), pages 313-354, January.
    4. Warren Miller, 1986. "Proception: An important fertility behavior," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 23(4), pages 579-594, November.
    5. Maria Rita Testa, 2012. "Couple disagreement about short-term fertility desires in Austria: Effects on intentions and contraceptive behaviour," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 26(3), pages 63-98.
    6. Aart C. Liefbroer, 2005. "The Impact of Perceived Costs and Rewards of Childbearing on Entry into Parenthood: Evidence from a Panel Study," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 21(4), pages 367-391, December.
    7. Maria Rita Testa & Laura Cavalli & Alessandro Rosina, 2014. "The Effect of Couple Disagreement about Child-Timing Intentions: A Parity-Specific Approach," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 40(1), pages 31-53, March.
    8. Caroline Hartnett, 2014. "White-Hispanic differences in meeting lifetime fertility intentions in the U.S," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 30(43), pages 1245-1276.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:somere:v:15:y:1986:i:1-2:p:24-43. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.