Breckler S J
Department of Psychology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21218.
Psychol Bull. 1990 Mar;107(2):260-73. doi: 10.1037/0033-2909.107.2.260.
Methods of covariance structure modeling are frequently applied in psychological research. These methods merge the logic of confirmatory factor analysis, multiple regression, and path analysis within a single data analytic framework. Among the many applications are estimation of disattenuated correlation and regression coefficients, evaluation of multitrait-multimethod matrices, and assessment of hypothesized causal structures. Shortcomings of these methods are commonly acknowledged in the mathematical literature and in textbooks. Nevertheless, serious flaws remain in many published applications. For example, it is rarely noted that the fit of a favored model is identical for a potentially large number of equivalent models. A review of the personality and social psychology literature illustrates the nature of this and other problems in reported applications of covariance structure models.
协方差结构建模方法在心理学研究中经常被应用。这些方法在单一的数据分析框架内融合了验证性因素分析、多元回归和路径分析的逻辑。其众多应用包括估计去衰减相关系数和回归系数、评估多特质-多方法矩阵以及评估假设的因果结构。这些方法的缺点在数学文献和教科书中已得到普遍认可。然而，在许多已发表的应用中仍存在严重缺陷。例如，很少有人注意到，对于大量潜在的等效模型，一个受青睐模型的拟合度是相同的。对人格与社会心理学文献的综述揭示了协方差结构模型在已报道应用中的这一问题及其他问题的本质。
