Explaining General and Specific Factors in Longitudinal, Multimethod, and Bifactor Models: Some Caveats and Recommendations

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An increasing number of psychological studies are devoted to the analysis of g-factor structures. One key purpose of applying g-factor models is to identify predictors or potential causes of the general and specific effects. Typically, researchers relate predictor variables directly to the general and specific factors using a classical mimic approach. However, this procedure bears some methodological challenges, which often lead to model misspecification and biased parameter estimates. We propose 2 possible modeling strategies to circumvent these problems: the multiconstruct bifactor and the residual approach. We illustrate both modeling approaches for the application of g-factor models to longitudinal and multitrait-multimethod data. Practical guidelines are provided for choosing an appropriate method in empirical applications, and the implications of this investigation for multimethod and longitudinal research are discussed.
OriginalspracheEnglisch
ZeitschriftPsychological Methods
Jahrgang23
Ausgabenummer3
Seiten (von - bis)505-523
Anzahl der Seiten19
ISSN1082-989X
DOIs
PublikationsstatusErschienen - 09.2018

DOI