A general set of mathematical and statistical techniques for the estimation and evaluation of a variety of ‘structural’ hypotheses represented by a set of parameters compared to observed summary statistics. In effect, it combines features of multiple regression and factor analysis to identify relationships between latent variables.
See Akaike’s information criterion, Causal pathways, Factor analysis, Fixed, free and equal parameters, Latent factor/score/variable, Latent growth model, Latent trait, Latent variable modeling, Linear growth model, Multilevel modeling (MLM), Path analysis (or causal modelling), Path diagram