Identifying and treating unobserved heterogeneity with FIMIX-PLS: part I – method

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of unobserved heterogeneity in the context of partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), its prevalence and challenges for social science researchers. Part II – in the next issue ( European Business Review , Vol. 28 No. 2) – presents a case study, which illustrates how to identify and treat unobserved heterogeneity in PLS-SEM using the finite mixture PLS (FIMIX-PLS) module in the SmartPLS 3 software. Design/methodology/approach – The paper merges literatures from various disciplines, such as management information systems, marketing and statistics, to present a state-of-the-art review of FIMIX-PLS. Based on this review, the paper…