Multiple-Group Factor Analysis Alignment

This article presents a new method for multiple-group confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), referred to as the alignment method. The alignment method can be used to estimate group-specific factor means and variances without requiring exact measurement invariance. A strength of the method is the ability to conveniently estimate models for many groups. The method is a valuable alternative to the currently used multiple-group CFA methods for studying measurement invariance that require multiple manual model adjustments guided by modification indexes. Multiple-group CFA is not practical with many groups due to poor model fit of the scalar model and too many large modification indexes. In contrast, the alignment…

• DO
  Division of Mathematical Sciences