Structural Equation Modeling Using AMOS

An Introduction

August 2012

Structural Equation Modeling Using AMOS

Table of Contents
Section 1: Introduction ................................................................................................................3
1.1 About this Document/Prerequisites ....................................................................................3
1.2 Accessing AMOS ..............................................................................................................3
1.3 Documentation ..................................................................................................................4
1.4 Getting Help with AMOS ..................................................................................................4
Section 2: SEM Basics ................................................................................................................5
2.1 Overview of Structural Equation Modeling ........................................................................5
2.2 SEM Nomenclature............................................................................................................6
2.3 Why SEM? ........................................................................................................................8
Section 3: SEM Assumptions ......................................................................................................8
3.1 A Reasonable Sample Size .................................................................................................8
3.2 Continuously and Normally Distributed Endogenous Variables .........................................9
3.3 Model Identification (Identified Equations) ........................................................................9
3.4 Complete Data or Appropriate Handling of Incomplete Data ........................................... 13
3.5 Theoretical Basis for Model Specification and Causality.................................................. 14
Section 4: Building and Testing a Model using AMOS Graphics ............................................... 15
4.1 Illustration of the SEM-Multiple Regression Relationship ................................................ 15
4.2 Drawing a model using AMOS Graphics ......................................................................... 19
4.3 Reading Data into AMOS ................................................................................................ 26
4.4 Selecting AMOS Analysis Options and Running your Model .......................................... 33
Section 5: Interpreting AMOS Output ....................................................................................... 35
5.1 Evaluating Global Model Fit ............................................................................................ 36
5.2 Tests of Absolute Fit ........................................................................................................ 38
5.3 Tests of Relative Fit ......................................................................................................... 38
5.4 Modifying the Model to Obtain Superior Goodness of Fit ................................................ 39
5.5 Viewing Path Diagram Output ......................................................................................... 46
5.6 Significance Tests of Individual Parameters ..................................................................... 49
Section 6: Putting it all together - A substantive interpretation of the findings ........................... 50
References ................................................................................................................................ 51
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Section 1: Introduction
1.1 About this Document/Prerequisites
This course is a brief introduction and overview of structural equation modeling using the
AMOS (Analysis of Moment Structures) software. Structural equation modeling (SEM)
encompasses such diverse statistical techniques as path analysis, confirmatory factor analysis,
causal modeling with latent variables, and even analysis of variance and multiple linear
regression. The course features an introduction to the logic of SEM, the assumptions and
required input for SEM analysis, and how to perform SEM analyses using AMOS.
By the end of the course you should be able to fit structural equation models using AMOS. You
will also gain an appreciation for the types of research questions well-suited to SEM and an
overview of the assumptions underlying SEM methods.
You should already know how to conduct a multiple linear regression analysis using SAS, SPSS,
or a similar general statistical software package. You should also understand how to interpret the
output from a multiple linear regression analysis. Finally, you should understand basic Microsoft
Windows navigation operations: opening files and folders, saving your work, recalling
previously saved work, etc.

1.2 Accessing AMOS

You may access AMOS in one of three ways:
1. License a copy from SPSS, Inc. for your own personal computer.
2. AMOS is available to faculty, students, and staff at the University of Texas at Austin via
the STATS Windows terminal server. To use the terminal server, you must obtain an ITS
computer account (an IF or departmental account) and then validate the account for
Windows NT Services. You then download and configure client software that enables
your PC, Macintosh, or UNIX workstation to connect to the terminal server. Finally, you
connect to the server and launch AMOS by double-clicking on the AMOS program icon
located in the STATS terminal server program group. Details on how to obtain an ITS
computer account, account use charges, and downloading client software and
configuration instructions may be found in http://ssc.utexas.edu/software/stat-apps-server
3. Download the free student version of AMOS from the AMOS development website for
your own personal computer. If your models of interest are small, the free demonstration
version may be sufficient to meet your needs. For larger models, you will need to
purchase your own copy of AMOS or access the ITS shared copy of the software through
the campus network. The latter option is typically more cost effective, particularly if you
decide to access the other software programs available on the server (e.g., SAS, SPSS,
HLM, Mplus, etc.).

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1.3 Documentation
The AMOS manual is the AMOS 16.0 User's Guide by James Arbuckle and can be found online.
It contains over twenty examples that map to models typically fitted by many investigators.
These same examples, including sample data, are included with the student and commercial
versions of AMOS, so you can easily fit and modify the models described in the AMOS manual.
The previous AMOS manual is the AMOS 4.0 User's Guide by James Arbuckle and Werner
Wothke; this manual also contains numerous examples. A copy of the AMOS 4.0 User's Guide is
available at the PCL for check out by faculty, students, and staff at UT Austin. Barbara Byrne
has also written a book on using AMOS. The title is Structural Equation Modeling with AMOS:
Basic Concepts, Applications, and Programming. The book is published by Lawrence Erlbaum
Associates, Inc. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. also publishes the journal Structural
Equation Modeling on a quarterly basis. The journal contains software reviews, empirical
articles, and theoretical pieces, as well as a teachers section and book reviews.
A number of textbooks about SEM are available, ranging from Ken Bollens encyclopedic
reference book to Rick Hoyles more applied edited volume. Several commonly cited titles are
shown below.

Bollen, K.A. (1989). Structural Equations with Latent Variables. New York: John Wiley and
Sons.
Loehlin, J.C. (1997). Latent Variable Models. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Hoyle, R. (1995). Structural Equation Modeling: Concepts, Issues, and Applications. Thousand
Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Hatcher, L. (1996). A Step-by-Step Approach to using the SAS System for Factor Analysis and
Structural Equation Modeling. Cary, NC: SAS Institute, Inc.

1.4 Getting Help with AMOS

If you have difficulties accessing AMOS on the STATS Windows terminal server, call the ITS
helpdesk at 512-475-9400 or send e-mail to help@its.utexas.edu.
If you are able to log in to the Windows NT terminal server and run AMOS, but have questions
about how to use AMOS or interpret output, schedule an appointment with a statistical
consultant at SSC statistical consulting or send e-mail to stats@ssc.utexas.edu. Important note:
Both services are available to University of Texas faculty, students, and staff only. See our
Web site at http://ssc.utexas.edu/consulting/ for more details about consulting services, as well
as frequently asked questions and answers about EFA, CFA/SEM, AMOS, and other topics.

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Non-UT and UT AMOS users will find Ed Rigdon's SEM FAQ Web site to be a useful
resource; see the information on the SEMNET online discussion group for information on how to
subscribe to this forum to post questions and learn more about SEM.

Section 2: SEM Basics

2.1 Overview of Structural Equation Modeling
SEM is an extension of the general linear model (GLM) that enables a researcher to test a set of
regression equations simultaneously. SEM software can test traditional models, but it also
permits examination of more complex relationships and models, such as confirmatory factor
analysis and time series analyses.
The basic approach to performing a SEM analysis is as follows:

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The researcher first specifies a model based on theory, then determines how to measure
constructs, collects data, and then inputs the data into the SEM software package. The package
fits the data to the specified model and produces the results, which include overall model fit
statistics and parameter estimates.
The input to the analysis is usually a covariance matrix of measured variables such as survey
item scores, though sometimes matrices of correlations or matrices of covariances and means are
used. In practice, the data analyst usually supplies SEM programs with raw data, and the
programs convert these data into covariances and means for its own use.
The model consists of a set of relationships among the measured variables. These relationships
are then expressed as restrictions on the total set of possible relationships.

The results feature overall indexes of model fit as well as parameter estimates, standard errors,
and test statistics for each free parameter in the model.

2.2 SEM Nomenclature

SEM has a language all its own. Statistical methods in general have this property, but SEM users
and creators seem to have elevated specialized language to a new level.
Independent variables, which are assumed to be measured without error, are called exogenous or
upstream variables; dependent or mediating variables are called endogenous or downstream
variables.
Manifest or observed variables are directly measured by researchers, while latent or unobserved
variables are not directly measured but are inferred by the relationships or correlations among
measured variables in the analysis. This statistical estimation is accomplished in much the same
way that an exploratory factor analysis infers the presence of latent factors from shared variance
among observed variables.
SEM users represent relationships among observed and unobserved variables using path
diagrams. Ovals or circles represent latent variables, while rectangles or squares represent
measured variables. Residuals are always unobserved, so they are represented by ovals or
circles.
In the diagram shown below, correlations and covariances are represented by bidirectional
arrows, which represent relationships without an explicitly defined causal direction. For instance,
F1 and F2 are related or associated, but no claim is made about F1 causing F2, or vice versa.
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By contrast, we do claim that F1 causes the scores observed on the measured variables I1 and I2.
Causal effects are represented by single-headed arrows in the path diagram. F1 and F2 can be
conceptualized as the variance the two indicators share (i.e., what the two indicators have in
common.) As you have probably guessed by now, F1 and F2 are latent factors; I1 through I4 are
observed variables. Perhaps they are survey items. E1 through E4 are residual or error variances
that also cause response variation in I1 through I4. This diagram tells us that scores or responses
on survey items one through four are caused by two correlated factors, along with variance that
is unique to each item. Some of that unique variance might be due to measurement error.
Some of the paths shown in the diagram are labeled with the number 1. This means that those
paths coefficients have fixed values set to 1.00. These fixed values are included by necessity:
they set the scale of measurement for the latent factors and residuals. Alternatively, you can set
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the variances of the factors to 1.00 to obtain implicitly standardized solutions. Note: you should
not use this latter method when you perform a multiple group analysis.

2.3 Why SEM?

Why would a researcher want to use SEM and have to deal with its own language and, as you
shall soon see, some fairly stringent statistical assumptions? SEM has a number of attractive
virtues:

Assumptions underlying the statistical analyses are clear and testable, giving the
investigator full control and potentially furthering understanding of the analyses.
Graphical interface software boosts creativity and facilitates rapid model debugging (a
feature limited to selected SEM software packages).
SEM programs provide overall tests of model fit and individual parameter estimate tests
simultaneously.
Regression coefficients, means, and variances may be compared simultaneously, even
across multiple between-subjects groups.
Measurement and confirmatory factor analysis models can be used to purge errors,
making estimated relationships among latent variables less contaminated by measurement
error.
Ability to fit non-standard models, including flexible handling of longitudinal data,
databases with autocorrelated error structures (time series analysis), and databases with
non-normally distributed variables and incomplete data.
This last feature of SEM is its most attractive quality. SEM provides a unifying
framework under which numerous linear models may be fit using flexible, powerful
software.

Section 3: SEM Assumptions

3.1 A Reasonable Sample Size
Structural equation modeling is a flexible and powerful extension of the general linear model.
Like any statistical method, it features a number of assumptions. These assumptions should be
met or at least approximated to ensure trustworthy results.
According to James Stevens Applied Multivariate Statistics for the Social Sciences, a good
general rule for sample size is 15 cases per predictor in a standard ordinary least squares multiple
regression analysis. Since SEM is closely related to multiple regression in some respects, 15
cases per measured variable in SEM is not unreasonable. Bentler and Chou (1987) note that
researchers may go as low as five cases per parameter estimate in SEM analysis, but only if the
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data are perfectly well-behaved (i.e., normally distributed, no missing data or outlying cases,
etc.). Notice that Bentler and Chou mention five cases per parameter estimate rather than per
measured variable. Measured variables typically have at least one path coefficient associated
with another variable in the analysis, plus a residual term or variance estimate, so it is important
to recognize that the Bentler and Chou and Stevens recommendations dovetail at approximately
15 cases per measured variable, minimum. More generally, Loehlin (1992) reports the results of
Monte Carlo simulation studies using confirmatory factor analysis models. After reviewing the
literature, he concludes that for this class of model with two to four factors, the investigator
should plan on collecting at least 100 cases, with 200 being better (if possible). Consequences of
using smaller samples include more convergence failures (the software cannot reach a
satisfactory solution), improper solutions (including negative error variance estimates for
measured variables), and lowered accuracy of parameter estimates and, in particular, standard
errors SEM program standard errors are computed under the assumption of large sample sizes.
When data are not normally distributed or are otherwise flawed in some way (almost always the
case), larger samples are required. It is difficult to make absolute recommendations as to what
sample sizes are required when data are skewed, kurtotic, incomplete, or otherwise less than
perfect. The general recommendation is thus to obtain more data whenever possible.

3.2 Continuously and Normally Distributed Endogenous Variables

SEM programs assume that dependent and mediating variables (so-called endogenous or
downstream variables in SEM parlance) are continuously distributed, with normally distributed
residuals. In fact, residuals from a SEM analysis are not only expected to be univariate normally
distributed, their joint distribution is expected to be joint multivariate normal (JMVN) as well.
However, this assumption is never completely met in practice.
SEM specialists have developed a number of methods to deal with non-normally distributed
variables. These methods are designed for variables that are assumed to have an underlying
continuous distribution. For instance, perhaps you administered a Likert scale of self-esteem
items to research participants. The scale points tap into points along a continuum of self-esteem,
and even though the item data are not continuously distributed, the underlying self-esteem
distribution is continuous.
By contrast, other outcome variables are not continuously distributed. For instance, did a patient
in a medical study live or die after treatment? Most SEM programs cannot handle these types of
nominal-level dependent variables at this time.

3.3 Model Identification (Identified Equations)

As you will soon see, SEM programs require an adequate number of known correlations or
covariances as inputs in order to generate a sensible set of results. An additional requirement is
that each equation be properly identified. Identification refers to the idea that there is at least one
unique solution for each parameter estimate in a SEM model. Models in which there is only one
possible solution for each parameter estimate are said to be just-identified. Models for which
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there are an infinite number of possible parameter estimate values are said to be underidentified.
Finally, models that have more than one possible solution (but one best or optimal solution) for
each parameter estimate are considered overidentified.

The following equation, drawn from Rigdon (1997) may help make this clearer:
x + 2y = 7
In the above equation, there are an infinite number of solutions for x and y (e.g., x = 5 and y =1,
or x = 3 and y = 2, or x = 1 and y = 3, etc.). These values are therefore underidentified because
there are fewer "knowns" than "unknowns." A just-identified model is one in which there are as
many knowns as unknowns.
x + 2y = 7
3x - y = 7
For this equation, there are just as many knowns as unknowns, and thus there is one best pair of
values (x = 3, y = 2).

An overidentified model occurs when every parameter is identified and at least one parameter is
overidentified (i.e., it can be solved for in more than way--instead of solving for this parameter
with one equation, more than one equation will generate this parameter estimate). Typically,
most people who use structural equation modeling prefer to work with models that are
overidentified. An overidentified model has positive degrees of freedom and may not fit as well
as a model that is just identified. Imposing restrictions on the model when you have an
overidentified model provides you with a test of your hypotheses, which can then be evaluated
using the chi-square statistic of absolute model fit and various descriptive model fit indices. The
positive degrees of freedom associated with an overidentified model allows the model to be
falsified with the chi-square test. When an overidentified model does fit well, then the researcher
typically considers the model to be an adequate fit for the data.

Identification is a structural or mathematical requirement in order for the SEM analysis to take
place. A number of rules can be used to assess the identification level of your models, but these
rules are not perfect, and they are very difficult (almost impossible, in fact) to evaluate by hand,
especially for complex models. SEM software programs such as AMOS perform identification
checks as part of the model fitting process. They usually provide reasonable warnings about
underidentification conditions.

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An additional complication that can arise is empirical underidentification. Empirical

underidentification occurs when a parameter estimate that establishes model identification has a
very small (close to zero) estimate. When the SEM program performs its matrix inversion, that
parameter estimate may drop from the solution space defined by the list of model parameters,
and the program thus suddenly detects what it perceives to be a structural underidentification
problem. Due to the iterative nature of SEM estimation, a parameter estimate such as a variance
may start out with a positive value and gradually approach zero with each successive iteration.
For example, a path coefficient whose value is estimated as being close to zero may be treated as
zero by the SEM program's matrix inversion algorithm. If that path coefficient is necessary to
identify the model, the model thus becomes underidentified.

The remedy for all forms of underidentification is to try to locate the source of the identification
problem and determine if the source is empirical underidentification or structural
underidentification. For structural underidentification, the only remedy is to respecify the model.
Empirical underidentification may be correctable by collecting more data or respecifying the
model.

An example from Rigdon (1997) may be informative to highlight these issues. Consider the
following model:

It contains one factor, F1, two error variances or residuals, e1 and e2, and one factor loading
value connecting F1 to v2. This model requires four parameters to be estimated: the factors
variance, the two error variances, and the one factor loading.
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How many of the available inputs can be used in the analysis? Three. How do you know there
are three available inputs? You can use the formula
[Q(Q + 1)] / 2

where Q represents the number of measured variables in the database that are used in the model.
In this model there are two observed variables, I1 and I2, so via the formula shown above,
[2(2+1)]/2 = 3. There are two variances, one for each of the two variables, and one covariance
between I1 and I2.
How is it possible to estimate four unknown parameters from three inputs? The answer is that it
is not possible: There are three available knowns or degrees of freedom available, but there are
four unknown parameters to estimate, so overall, the model has 3 4 = -1 degrees of freedom, a
clearly impossible state of affairs. This model is clearly underidentified additional constraints
will need to be imposed on this model in order to achieve a satisfactory level of identification.
Now consider a second model:

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This new model has [4(4+1)] / 2 = 10 available degrees of freedom because there are four
observed variables used in the model. Subtracting four error variances, two factor loadings, and
two factor variances, and one covariance between the factors from the 10 available degrees of
freedom results in one left over or available degree of freedom. This model is structurally
identified. In fact, it is overidentified because there is one positive degree of freedom present.
As it turns out, if the parameter estimate of the covariance between F1 and F2 becomes zero or
very close to zero, the model can become empirically underidentified because even though it is
structurally identified by the covariance specified between F1 and F2, it is not identified on an
empirical basis from the computer softwares perspective.
In practice, all successfully fitted models are just-identified or overidentified. Typically you want
to use overidentified models because these models allow you to test statistical hypotheses,
including global model fit (Loehlin, 1992).

3.4 Complete Data or Appropriate Handling of Incomplete Data

Many SEM software programs accept correlation or covariance matrix input. That is, you could
compute these matrices yourself using another software package (such as SPSS) and then input
them into AMOS or another SEM package for analysis. This feature is useful if you plan to reanalyze a covariance matrix reported in a journal article, for instance.
Usually, however, the preferred mode of analysis uses raw data input: the researcher passes a
database, perhaps in SPSS or some other common format (like Microsoft Excel), to the SEM
program and it computes the covariances as part of its analysis. What do these programs do
about databases without complete data? Typical ad hoc solutions to missing data problems
include listwise deletion of cases, where an entire cases record is deleted if the case has one or
more missing data points, and pairwise data deletion, where bivariate correlations are computed
only on cases with available data. Pairwise deletion results in different Ns for each bivariate
covariance or correlation in the database. Another typically used ad hoc missing data handling
technique is substitution of the variables mean for the missing data points on that variable.
But none of these ad hoc missing data handling methods are appealing from a statistical point of
view. Listwise deletion can result in a substantial loss of power, particularly if many cases each
have a few data points missing on a variety of variables, not to mention limiting statistical
inference to individuals who complete all measures in the database. Pairwise deletion is
marginally better, but the consequences of using different ns for each covariance or correlation
can have profound consequences for model fitting efforts, including impossible solutions in
some instances. Finally, mean substitution will shrink the variances of the variables where mean
substitution took place, which is not desirable. The most important problem with these methods
is that they assume that the missing data are missing completely at random, which is often not
the case (Little & Rubin, 1987).
What is a researcher to do about missing data? If the proportion of cases with missing data is
small, say five percent or less, listwise deletion may be acceptable (Roth, 1994). Of course, if the
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five percent (or fewer) cases are not missing completely at random, inconsistent parameter
estimates can result. Otherwise, missing data experts (e.g., Little and Rubin, 1987) recommend
using a maximum likelihood estimation method for analysis, a method that makes use of all
available data points. AMOS features maximum likelihood estimation in the presence of missing
data.

3.5 Theoretical Basis for Model Specification and Causality

SEM models can never be accepted; they can only fail to be rejected. This leads researchers to
provisionally accept a given model. SEM researchers recognize that in most instances there are
equivalent models that fit equally as well as their own provisionally accepted model. Any of
these models may be correct because they fit the data as well as the preferred model.
Researchers do their best to eliminate alternative models, and by extension alternative
explanations, but this is not always possible. The use of SEM thus entails some uncertainty,
particularly with cross-sectional data that are not collected under controlled conditions. (This is
also true of other commonly used models such as ANOVA and multiple regression techniques.)
For this reason, SEM software programs require researchers to be very explicit in specifying
models. While models that fit the data well can only be provisionally accepted, models that do
not fit the data well can be absolutely rejected. For instance, if you fit a single factor
confirmatory factor analysis model to a set of ten survey items, and the model is rejected, you
can be confident that a single factor is not sufficient to explain the items shared variance, a
useful finding, particularly if you believe that one common factor is not enough to explain the
items shared variance. Suppose you ran a single factor model and then a dual factor model on
the same set of ten items; the former model is rejected but the latter model is not rejected. Now
you know that more than one factor is needed to account for the shared variance among the
measured items.
In addition to evaluating the absolute goodness of fit of single models, you can also evaluate
competing models by using likelihood ratio chi-square tests to compare them. Returning to the
previous example, you could compare the single and dual factor models to each other using a
statistical test. If that test statistic is significant, you can conclude that the more complex two
factor model fits the data better than the one factor model. On the other hand, had you found no
significant difference between the two models, you could conclude that the one factor model fit
the data just as well as the two factor model.
Not all models are directly comparable in this way. Only models where you can derive a simpler
model by imposing a set of constraints or restrictions onto a more complex model may be
compared in this manner. These models are called nested models. When you want to compare
models that are not directly comparable, you can use various descriptive criteria to compare
these non-nested models.

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Section 4: Building and Testing a Model using AMOS Graphics

4.1 Illustration of the SEM-Multiple Regression Relationship
In essence, SEM is a multivariate extension of the multiple linear regression model with one
dependent (Y) variable:
y = i + Xb + e
where y = a vector containing observed scores on the dependent variable, i is a vector of 1s
representing the y-intercept, X is a matrix of continuously distributed or categorical (dummycoded) independent variables, b is the vector of regression weights, and e represents the vector of
residual or error or leftover scoring unexplained by the model.
SEMs consist of series of multiple regression equations all equations are fitted simultaneously.
In fact, you can conduct a multiple regression analysis using SEM software.
A typical multiple linear regression analysis produces several statistics, including an overall test
of model fit and tests of individual parameter estimates. In addition, the analysis prints out
unstandardized regression coefficients, standard errors for those coefficients, and a standardized
version of the regression coefficients. In addition, a squared multiple correlation or R 2 for the
regression equation indicates the proportion of variance in the dependent variable accounted for
by the set of independent variables in the multiple regression equation. As you will soon see,
AMOS produces these very same statistics, though it generates them for multiple equations
rather than for a single equation, as is the case in ordinary least-squares regression.
Suppose you have a database with three continuous predictor variables: education level, a
socioeconomic indicator, and feelings of powerlessness measured in 1967. There is one
continuous dependent variable, feelings of powerlessness measured in 1971. These data are
simulated based on the results reported in a larger study by Wheaton, Muthn, Alwin, and
Summers (1977).
If you run a multiple regression analysis in SPSS for Windows using these variables, you will
obtain the following results (some output is omitted in the interest of conserving space):

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The salient output from SPSS shows the correlations among each of the predictors, as well as the
predictors and the dependent variable. An R2 value of .32 is then shown, with unstandardized and
standardized regression coefficients and significance tests shown in the final table.
Now consider the equivalent model fit in AMOS:

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The three predictors are allowed to covary; predictors covariances are shown in the diagram.
For example, the covariance between education and the socioeconomic indicator is 3.47. The
variance of each predictor appears above its rectangle. The unstandardized regression weights,
which correspond to the B coefficients displayed in the SPSS output, link the predictor variables
to the dependent variables rectangle in the AMOS diagram. For instance, the unstandardized
regression coefficient of the education variable is .11. Since the unstandardized regression
coefficient represents the amount of change in the dependent variable per single unit change in
the predictor variable, this result suggests that for every single unit of increase in education level,
powerlessness in 1971 is reduced by -.11 units in the population from which Wheaton et al. drew
their sample.

The diagram also features a residual variance associated with the measurement of powerlessness
in 1971. Since this variance is not directly measured, it is represented as a latent variable in the
AMOS diagram. The estimate of the error variance is 6.86.

In addition to the unstandardized regression coefficients, SPSS also produces standardized

regression coefficients and an R2 value that summarizes the proportion of variance in the
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dependent variable explainable by the collective set of the predictors. AMOS produces these
statistics as well, but it uses a separate diagram to display the standardized coefficients and R 2
value.

In this diagram the covariances have been replaced by correlations. For example, the correlation
between the socioeconomic indicator and the powerlessness measure in 1967 is -.32, the same
value shown in the SPSS Correlations table above. Standardized regression coefficients now link
the predictors to the dependent variable, and the R2 value for the dependent variable appears
above its rectangle on the diagram. The standardized regression weights represent the amount of
change in the dependent variable that is attributable to a single standard deviation units worth of
change in the predictor variable.
AMOS also produces tabular output similar to that of SPSS that displays the unstandardized and
standardized regression coefficients, the standard error estimates of the unstandardized
regression coefficients, and tests of statistical significance of the null hypothesis that each
unstandardized regression coefficient equals zero. The AMOS tabular output will be discussed at
more length below.
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The regression analysis shown above is limited in several ways:

Multiple dependent or outcome variables are not permitted

Mediating variables cannot be included in the same single model as predictors
Each predictor is assumed to be measured without error
The error or residual variable is the only latent variable permitted in the model
Multicollinearity among the predictors may hinder result interpretation

AMOS can fit models that are not subject to these limitations. An example of such a model
applied to the Wheaton et al. database appears in the next section.

4.2 Drawing a model using AMOS Graphics

Suppose you want to test a model of the stability of alienation over time, as measured by anomia
and powerlessness feelings at two measurement occasions, 1967 and 1971, as well as education
level and a socioeconomic index. The path diagram, including standardized regression
coefficients, appears below.

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How can you test this model and develop from scratch a publication quality path diagram like the
one shown above? The first step is to launch AMOS. If you are using the UT server, click on the
Start menu from the Windows taskbar, select All Programs, select Statistics, then choose AMOS
16 Graphics. You will now see a blank AMOS Graphics diagram page that looks like this:

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You will also see a floating toolbar appear. The toolbar may partially obscure the AMOS
drawing area, but you can move it out of the way by dragging it to the side of your computer
screen. Select the toolbar by single-clicking on it with your mouse pointer. If you place your
mouse pointer over any tool icon with the toolbar selected, AMOS displays the name and
function of the tool. You can also right-click on the tool icon for more detailed AMOS help on
how to use the tool.
To add or remove individual tools from the toolbar, choose Move Tools from the Tools menu in
AMOS Graphics. You may need to resize your toolbar from time to time to view all available
tools, particularly if you have many tools displayed or you have a small monitor.
Tools are activated by single-clicking on their icons with your mouse pointer. A tool that is
active or in use will have an icon that appears to be depressed or lowered. To deactivate a
particular tool, single-click on its icon once again. Its icon should change to look like the other
tools on the toolbar.
Select the Draw Latent Variables and Indicators tool from the toolbar by first single-clicking
on the toolbar to make it active and then single-clicking on the Draw Latent Variables and
Indicators button to make it active. This tool resembles a factor analysis model with three
indicator variables:
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Move your mouse pointer to the drawing surface and draw an oval by clicking and holding your
mouse button. Once you have a satisfactory oval drawn, click on the oval twice. You will now
have a latent variable with two observed indicators.
Perhaps your latent and observed variables are too close to the edge of the AMOS drawing
space. To move them closer to the center of the diagram, click on the Preserve Symmetries
button.

Next, click on the red moving truck tool (Move Objects); then click and drag the latent variable
and its indicators closer to the center of the AMOS drawing space. When you are finished, you
will have a diagram that looks like this:

So far, you have drawn part of the desired model. This part of the model could represent a latent
variable called Socioeconomic Status (SES) with two observed indicators, Education, and
Socioeconomic Index (SEI). Recall that rectangles represent observed or measured variables,
while ovals represent latent or unobserved variables. The two ovals leading to the two observed
variables represent the residuals for those observed variables, while the larger oval represents
their shared variance. This shared variance is captured by the latent variable, Socioeconomic
Status.
The model has two more segments that resemble this section (alienation at 1967 and alienation at
1971), so you can copy the portion of the model you have already built. To do that:
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Turn off the Preserve Symmetries tool button by clicking on it.

Click on the Select All Objects tool (represented by a raised hand with four fingers
extended). The entire diagram should change color from black to blue.

Click on the Duplicate Objects tool icon (it resembles a photocopier), click on the latent
variables oval, and drag your mouse pointer to the right. You should see a replica of the
single latent variable-two indicator variable structure appear.

Hint: If you hold down the shift key while you perform this operation, the new portion of the
diagram will be horizontally aligned with the previous diagram section.
When you finish with this step, your drawing should look like this:

Click on the Deselect Objects tool button to remove the object selection. This button resembles
a hand with four fingers retracted or bent.

Rotate the indicators of this second latent variable so that they point down on the AMOS
diagram space instead of up. Select the Rotate Indicators tool button.

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Click once on the second latent variables oval. The two indicators and their residuals rotate 90
degrees clockwise. Click the oval once more. The indicators rotate another 90 degrees. Click on
the Rotate Indicators tool button to deactivate it.

Click on the Preserve Symmetries tool and then click on the Move Objects tool. Click on the
second latent variable and move it beneath the first latent variable and to the left on the diagram.
When you finish, your diagram should look like this:

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Copy the latent and observed variables in the lower set by selecting the Duplicate Objects
button from the toolbar once again, selecting the latent variable of the lower latent variable,
and drag it to the right. Your diagram will now look like this:

Notice that a number of the paths are fixed to a value of 1.00. These are present to ensure proper
model identification. Perhaps you want to have those paths be consistently on the left side of
each variable set. To do that, use the Reflect Indicators tool.

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Once you have selected the tool button, click once on each of the two lower latent variables.
Your updated diagram will now look like this:

Congratulations! You have just specified the measurement part of your model. Now you must
tell AMOS where to find the data for conducting the analysis and you must label the observed
variables.

4.3 Reading Data into AMOS

To read data into AMOS, choose Data Files from the File menu.
File
Data Files

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The following dialog box appears:

Click on File Name to specify the name of the data file. The View Data button launches a data
files external application. For instance, if you specify a SPSS data file using the File Name
button, and you then click View Data, AMOS will launch SPSS so that you can view the
contents of the data file. The Grouping Variable button allows you to specify a grouping
variable within a database, so you can easily set up and test models that involve multiple groups
of subjects.

Currently AMOS reads the following data file formats:

Access
dBase 3 5
Microsft Excel 3, 4, 5, and 97
FoxPro 2.0, 2.5 and 2.6
Lotus wk1, wk3, and wk4
SPSS *.sav files, versions 7.0.2 through 9.0 (both raw data and matrix formats)
Comma-delimited text files (semicolon-delimited in countries where the comma is used
as a decimal separator).

AMOS recognizes empty or blank cells in MS Excel and Access as missing data. Systemmissing data (represented by blank cells in the SPSS data editor spreadsheet) are also properly
recognized by AMOS as missing data points. Comma-delimited data files should have two
consecutive commas listed to represent a missing data point.

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Simulated data for this example model are in an SPSS for Windows data file called Wheatongenerated.sav. If you have not already downloaded this data file, you can retrieve it at the
following Web address:

http://ssc.utexas.edu/software/software-tutorials#amos
To read these data into AMOS, select Data Files from the AMOS Graphics File menu.
File
Data Files
In the dialog box that appears, click on the File Name button. AMOS will produce a file opening
dialog box that resembles the box shown below.

In this example, the Wheaton-generated SPSS database has been located and selected in the File
Name slot of this dialog box. You should follow suit, using your copy of AMOS Graphics:
locate the Wheaton-generated.sav SPSS data file on your computer, and choose it using AMOS.

Once you have located and specified the appropriate data file, click on the Open button. You
will now see the following window:

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Click OK to return to AMOS Graphics. You have now made the data available to AMOS.

Once AMOS receives the data, you can label observed variables. Select the Variables in
Dataset option from the View/Set menu to see a window like the one shown below.
View/Set
Variables in Dataset

Select each of these entries one at a time and drag them onto the appropriate rectangles on the
path diagram. You may notice that some of the variable names are too large to fit inside their
rectangles. One partial remedy for this problem is to enlarge the entire model by clicking on the
Resize Diagram to Fit the Page tool bar icon.
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You can also use the Shape Change tool icon to alter the shape of the rectangles so that they are
wide enough to hold the variable names:

Select each of the rectangles using the Select Single Objects tool (it resembles a hand with the
index finger extended).

Next, click on the Shape Change tool icon to alter the shape of the rectangles. Finally, you can
reduce the size of the variable name font by double-clicking on the rectangle for a particular
variable. After you make these adjustments, your finished measurement model diagram should
look like this:

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There are three remaining tasks left. You must:

1. Name the latent variables.
2. Specify the relationships among the latent variables (the structural model).
3. Create residual terms for any latent variables predicted by other variables in the model.
Any variable predicted by another variable or set of variables must have a residual value.
To name the upper latent variable, double-click on it and enter its name (SES) in the Variable
Name text box. Then close the window. To name the lower left latent variable, double-click on it
and enter its name, Alienation 1967, in the Variable Name text box. Repeat this process for the
lower right latent variable, Alienation 1971.
For large models, there is a Name Unobserved Variables macro available under the Tools
menu. This macro will name the unobserved variables automatically. Select and run this macro
now to name the remaining unobserved variables that have not yet been named in the diagram
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(i.e., the residuals). After the macro runs, each residual will have a name, beginning with e1.

To specify the paths among the latent variables, use single-headed arrows to represent causal
relationships and dual-headed arrows to represent bidirectional relationships (correlations).

To create a residual for a latent variable, use the Add Unique Variable tool icon.

Select the tools icon on the toolbar. Next, click once on a latent variable to create a unique
residual variable for that latent variable. You can click on the latent variable again to move the
position of the new residual variable 45 degrees to the right (clockwise). By clicking on the
latent variable repeatedly, you can move the new residual variable around the original latent
variable in 45 degree increments until you find a location where it looks best on the diagram.

After you make these adjustments, your finished model diagram should resemble the following
image.

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After you have drawn your model, be sure to save it by choosing the File menu, and then
selecting Save As. When you save the model, AMOS automatically creates two back-up model
files in the same directory in which you have your original diagram. The original diagram file
will have the extension .amw; the back-up files will have the extensions .bk1 and .bk2,
respectively.

4.4 Selecting AMOS Analysis Options and Running your Model

You are now ready to run the model. But first, select Analysis Properties from the View/Set
menu. Investigate the various tabs and options available under each tab. One of the more
interesting choices is the Output tab.

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In this analysis, the investigator requests a number of options, including a standardized solution,
squared multiple correlations, the sample covariance matrix, and the covariance matrix of the
residuals remaining after AMOS fits the model.

Next, examine the Estimation tab. Notice that this tab provides a check box that allows you to
estimate means and intercepts.
Hint: If your database has any cases with incomplete data, AMOS will require you to estimate
means and intercepts; so you must select this check box if your database has any missing data on
observed variables included in your model.
Because this models database does not contain any missing data and we are not interested in
means at present, we leave the Estimation tab settings at their default values.
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Before you run the model, be sure to save it by choosing Save As from the File menu and saving
a copy of the model file to an appropriate location on your computers disk drive.

To run the model, close the Analysis Properties window and click on the Calculate Estimates
tool icon. It resembles an abacus:

Section 5: Interpreting AMOS Output

You can check to see if your model ran successfully by examining the left-hand side of the
AMOS Graphics drawing area. Consider the following screen shot taken after the Wheaton
model finished running:

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The bottom portion of this output shows a chi-square value of 76.10 with 6 degrees of freedom.
This test statistic tests the overall fit of the model to the data. The null hypothesis under test is
that the model fits the data, so you hope to find a small, non-significant chi-square value for this
test. The significance test for the chi-square model fit statistic is described in the next section.

5.1 Evaluating Global Model Fit

So far, none of the output you have seen contains tests of statistical significance. AMOS
produces such tests. They are stored in a spreadsheet table file. You can access this output by
selecting the View Table Output tool.

The table that appears contains a list of output categories on the left side of the window and an
open space on the right. When you select a particular subset of output for display, it appears in
the right-hand space. Consider the Notes for Model section of the output.

You should always examine the Notes for Model section of the AMOS output after each AMOS
analysis finishes because AMOS will display most errors and warnings in this section of the
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output. In the output shown above, AMOS reports that the minimum was achieved with no errors
or warnings. The chi-square test of absolute model fit is reported, along with its degrees of
freedom and probability value. The interpretation of these results will be discussed in further
detail below.
The absence of errors or warnings in this section of the output means that it is safe for you to
proceed to the next output section of interest, the Fit Measures output.

The Fit Measures output contains five columns. The first column shows the name of each fit
measure. The second column, labeled Default model, contains the fit statistics for the model you
specified in your AMOS Graphics diagram.
The next two columns, labeled Saturated and Independence, refer to two baseline or comparison
models automatically fitted by AMOS as part of every analysis. The Saturated model contains as
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many parameter estimates as there are available degrees of freedom or inputs into the analysis.
The Saturated model is thus the least restricted model possible that can be fit by AMOS. By
contrast, the Independence model is one of the most restrictive models that can be fit: it contains
estimates of the variances of the observed variables only. In other words, the Independence
model assumes all relationships between the observed variables are zero.

5.2 Tests of Absolute Fit

The chi-square test of overall model fit is labeled Discrepancy in this output. Its value is 76.102
with 6 degrees of freedom, returning a probability value of less than .001 that a chi-square value
this large or larger would be obtained by chance if the null hypothesis that the model fits the data
is true.
The 6 degrees of freedom represent the level of overidentification of the model. Employing the
earlier formula, there are 6 observed variables, so there are [6(6+1)]/2 = 21 available degrees of
freedom. There are 6 residual variance estimates, 3 factor variances, 3 path coefficients, and 3
factor loadings there are 15 parameters estimated. 21 degrees of freedom 15 estimated
parameters = 6 available degrees of freedom for the chi-square test of overall model fit.
Since the probability value of the chi-square test is smaller than the .05 level used by convention,
you would reject the null hypothesis that the model fits the data. This conclusion is not good
news for the researcher who hopes to fit this model to the dataset used in the example.

5.3 Tests of Relative Fit

Because the chi-square test of absolute model fit is sensitive to sample size and non-normality in
the underlying distribution of the input variables, investigators often turn to various descriptive
fit statistics to assess the overall fit a model to the data. In this framework, a model may be
rejected on an absolute basis, yet a researcher may still claim that a given model outperforms
some other baseline model by a substantial amount. Put another way, the argument researchers
make in this context is that their chosen model is substantially less false than a baseline model,
typically the independence model. A model that is parsimonious, and yet performs well in
comparison to other models may be of substantive interest.
For example, the Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI) and the Comparative Fit Index (CFI) compare the
absolute fit of your specified model to the absolute fit of the Independence model. The greater
the discrepancy between the overall fit of the two models, the larger the values of these
descriptive statistics.
A separate block of the output displays parsimony adjusted fit statistics. These fit statistics are
similar to the adjusted R2 in multiple regression analysis: the parsimony fit statistics penalize
large models with many estimated parameters and few leftover degrees of freedom.
The fit output contains a large array of model fit statistics. All are designed to test or describe
overall model fit. Each researcher has his or her favorite collection of fit statistics to report.
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Commonly reported fit statistics are the chi-square (labeled Discrepancy in the output shown
above), its degrees of freedom (DF), its probability value (P), the Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI), and
the Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) and its lower and upper confidence
interval boundaries. There is also a Standardized Root Mean Residual (Standardized RMR)
available through the Tools, Macro menu, but it is important to note that this fit index is only
available for complete datasets (it will not be printed for databases containing incomplete data).
Various rules of thumb for each of these fit statistics exist. These rules of thumb change as
statisticians publish new simulation studies that further document the behavior of various
measures of fit. The chi-square test is an absolute test of model fit: If the probability value (P) is
below .05, the model is rejected. The other measures of fit are descriptive. Hu and Bentler (1999)
recommend RMSEA values below .06 and Tucker-Lewis Index values of .95 or higher. Since the
RMSEA for this model is .11 and the Tucker-Lewis Index value is .92, the model does not fit
well according to the descriptive measures of fit.
The final column in the Fit Measures table is labeled Macro and contains the name of the
corresponding macro variable for each fit statistic reported by AMOS in the Fit Measures table.
These macro variables may be specified as part of the path diagram display if you want to
display a fit index value as part of the AMOS diagram output. For example, you could use the
CMIN macro variable to display the fitted models chi-square on the diagram. Macro variables
are used in the diagrams title, which you can specify by selecting the Title button from the
AMOS toolbar.

Formulas for the discrepancy fit functions used to generate the chi-square test of overall model
fit and the descriptive model fit statistics may be found in the AMOS manual and also in the
AMOS program help files.

5.4 Modifying the Model to Obtain Superior Goodness of Fit

It is rare that a model fits well at first. Sometimes model modification is required to obtain a
better-fitting model. AMOS allows for the use of modification indices to generate the expected
reduction in the overall model fit chi-square for each possible path that can be added to the
model. To request modification index output, select the Modification Indices check box in the
Output tab in the Analysis Properties window.
View/Set
Analysis Properties
Output

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The Threshold for Modification Indices allows you to specify what level of chi-square change
is required for a path to be included in the modification index output. The default value is 4.00
because it slightly exceeds the tabled critical value of a chi-square distribution with one degree
of freedom: 3.84. Any additional parameter estimated by AMOS should result in an expected
reduction in the model chi-square of at least 3.84. The modification index results appear below.

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All possible variances were estimated, so there are no unmodeled variances that could be
estimated in a modified or revised model. Thus, the Variances section contains no model
modification information. There are, however, possible regression weights and covariances that
can be incorporated into a re-specified model that would result in substantial changes in the
model fit chi-square test statistic.
The largest modification index values are found in the first four pairs of residual covariances. For
example, the covariance of e4 with e6 is expected to be .901 if you were to re-specify the model
with that covariance added and then refit the model. That models chi-square test of overall fit
should be approximately 30.127 units lower than the present models value of 76.102.
Should you allow the four pairs of error covariances to be estimated in a modified model? From
looking at modification index results, the answer appears to be Yes, but it is wise to reconsider
the conceptual implications of model modification before you proceed further. It is important to
understand that when you modify a model based upon the modification index output, you are:
1. Re-specifying your model
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2. Re-specifying your model based on sample-dependent results

Any time you re-specify or modify your model, you are implicitly changing its meaning in some
fundamental way. In many instances, a change in model specification results in a trivial or
unimportant corresponding alteration of the models substantive meaning, but in other cases
model modification can foreshadow a strong shift in the models meaning from a theoretical
standpoint. Therefore, it is crucially important to think through each proposed model
modification and ask yourself if making the modification is theoretically consistent with your
research goals.
A second consideration to take into account when you modify a model is that you are relying on
the empirical data rather than theory to help you specify the model. The more empirically-based
modifications you incorporate into your final model, the less likely the model is to replicate in
new samples of data. For these reasons, you should modify your models based upon theory as
well as the empirical results provided by the modification indices.

As a practical consideration, it is also worth noting that AMOS provides modification index
output only when complete data are input into the program. In other words, you cannot obtain
modification index information when you use missing data with AMOS.

Can you apply these principles to the model from the current example? Yes. In examining the
model, you can see that there are two instruments that have multiple measurements: Anomia and
Powerlessness are measured in 1967 and 1971. Since these data come from the same research
participants, it seems reasonable to conclude that there may be shared variance between Anomia
in 1967 and Anomia in 1971 that is not captured by the present model. Similarly, there may also
be shared variance between Powerlessness in 1967 and Powerlessness in 1971 that is not
accounted for in the present model.

You can correlate the residuals of these two sets of variables to incorporate these sets of shared
variance into the model. To correlate the residuals, return to the AMOS Graphics window and
select the Draw Covariances tool, represented by a double-headed arrow.

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Draw a correlation between e3, the error term for Anomia in 1967, and e5, the error term for
Anomia in 1971. Repeat the process for the Powerlessness residuals.

Hint: You can alter the amount of curvature in the correlation lines by using the Shape Change
tool.

The modified model appears below.

AMOS displays this result when this model is run:

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Inclusion of the two correlated residuals results in a substantial drop in the model fit chi-square
from 76.1 to 7.8. Notice that degrees of freedom of the chi-square test is reduced from six
degrees of freedom to four degrees of freedom. The two degrees of freedom change occurs
because each parameter estimated by the model consumes one degree of freedom; since you
included two new parameters in the modified model (the two residual correlations), the new
model has two fewer degrees of freedom remaining.

The model fit table produced by AMOS appears below:

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The chi-square value of 7.817 with four degrees of freedom is non-significant at the .05 level: its
p-value is .099. This finding suggests that model fits the data acceptably in the population from
which Wheaton et al. drew their sample. Corroborating evidence is provided by the RMSEA fit
statistic the obtained value of .032 is well below the desired .06 cutoff. Similarly, the TuckerLewis Index result of .993 is considerably above the .95 threshold denoting satisfactory model
fit.

Once you obtain a model that fits well and is theoretically consistent, you may interpret the
parameter estimates and individual tests of significance of each parameter estimate. AMOS
provides two ways for you to examine parameter estimates. One method uses the path diagram
output to visually display the parameter estimates while the other approach uses tables similar to
those containing the overall model fit statistics.
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5.5 Viewing Path Diagram Output

At the top of this section of the AMOS Graphics window is an up-arrow located next to a downarrow.

Clicking on the up-arrow will cause AMOS to display the parameter estimates. Unstandardized
or standardized estimates can be chosen by clicking on the appropriate selection. Standardized
estimates are selected in the figure shown below.
Clicking on the down-arrow returns you to the AMOS Graphics drawing interface, where you
can modify your existing model and then re-run it, or you can open a new model or pre-existing
model file. When you click on the up-arrow, the following parameter estimates are displayed as
part of the output.

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The values associated with each path are standardized regression coefficients. These values
represent the amount of change in Y given a standard deviation unit change in X. (The
corresponding unstandardized coefficients represent the amount of change in Y given a single
raw score unit change in X).
AMOS also prints the R2 values for each dependent or mediating variable above the variable. For
example, the R2 value for Anomia67 is .62. Although AMOS does a good job of laying out the
coefficients in its default display, it may be necessary from time to time to move a particular
parameter estimate value so that the drawing appears less cluttered and more easily interpretable.
To move a parameter on the output diagram, use the Move Parameter tool.

Select the tool and move your mouse pointer over the offending variable until it is highlighted in
red. Then click and pull the mouse in a direction you think would allow the parameter estimate
value to be displayed more appropriately. A good choice in the present diagram is the .39 R 2
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value for the Alienation 1967 latent variable. Currently, it is partially hidden by the SES to
Alienation 1967 path. By dragging the parameter estimate object slightly to the right of the path
object, you can see the .39 value unobstructed.

A nice feature of AMOS is its high-quality graphical output. You can take this output and copy it
to the Windows clipboard. From there you can insert it into a word processor such as MS Word
or a presentation package like MS PowerPoint.
This model has several interesting features worth noting. First, it contains both latent
(unobserved) and manifest (observed) variables. Second, it contains both causal relationships
among latent variables, represented by single-headed arrows, and correlational or bi-directional
relationships among several of the residuals. These are represented by the dual-headed arrows
connecting e3 with e5 and e4 with e6, respectively. As discussed above, because the two anomia
and powerlessness measures are identical and measured on the same research participants across
time, it makes sense that they share variance due to causes not accounted for by the alienation
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latent factors. The correlations between the residuals accounts for that additional shared
variance.

5.6 Significance Tests of Individual Parameters

The AMOS output also displays the unstandardized and standardized regression coefficients. The
unstandardized coefficients and associated test statistics appear below. Each unstandardized
regression coefficient represents the amount of change in the dependent or mediating variable for
each one unit change in the variable predicting it. For example, in the figure shown below
Alienation in 1967 decreases -.726 for each 1.00 increase in SES.

The table displays the unstandardized estimate, its standard error (abbreviated S.E.), and the
estimate divided by the standard error (abbreviated C.R. for Critical Ratio). The probability
value associated with the null hypothesis that the test is zero is displayed under the P column. All
of the regression coefficients in this model are significantly different from zero beyond the .01
level.
Standardized estimates allow you to evaluate the relative contributions of each predictor variable
to each outcome variable. The standardized estimates for the fitted model appear below.

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There is not much difference between the standardized and unstandardized coefficients in this
example, probably because the units are derived from survey measurement items. By contrast,
variables with very different measurement scales entered into the same model can result in sharp
discrepancies between the standardized and unstandardized regression coefficient output.

Section 6: Putting it all together - A substantive interpretation of the

findings
Once you have obtained a model that fits well and that is theoretically consistent and it provides
statistically significant parameter estimates, you must interpret it in the light of your research
questions and then distill your results in written form for publication.
Noteworthy features of this model include the negative relationship between SES and Alienation,
both in 1967 and in 1971, as illustrated by the statistically significant unstandardized regression
coefficients. The standardized coefficients reveal a stronger relationship between SES and
Alienation in 1967 versus 1971. As one would expect, the relationship between Alienation in
1967 and Alienation in 1971 is strong as well. The measurement portion of the model is also
quite good the lowest R2 value is .46 (SEI), which is a reasonable value to obtain in behavioral
sciences research, and the other R2 values are higher, indicating that the model is accounting for
a large proportion of the variance in the measured items.
It is important to note that even though this model fits the data well and provides a theoretically
consistent set of findings, there may be other equivalent models that fit the data equally well.
There may also be non-equivalent alternative models that fit the data better than this model.
Researchers should strive to test and rule out likely alternative models whenever possible.

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Structural Equation Modeling Using AMOS

Hoyle and Panter (in Hoyle, 1995) and Hatcher (1994) provide excellent discussions of how to
write the results of structural equation models for publication in journals and textbooks. Hoyle
and Panter provide guidelines for writing about structural equation models whereas Hatcher
provides sample text from a mock write-up of the results of a SEM analysis ostensibly performed
for a manuscript to be submitted for publication in a scholarly journal. Both texts full citations
appear in the References section, shown below, and are available through the UT library system.
In this course you learned

what SEM is and where to locate SEM resources in print and on line.
SEM nomenclature.
the mathematical basis of SEM and its assumptions.
how to draw a model using AMOS.
how to run the AMOS model and evaluate several key components of the AMOS
graphics and text output, including overall model fit and test statistics for individual path
coefficients.
how to modify and respecify a non-fitting model.

References
Benter, P. M. & Chou, C. P. (1987). Practical issues in structural modeling. Sociological
Methods and Research, 16(1), 78-117.
Bollen, K. A. (1989). Structural equations with latent variables. New York, NY: John Wiley &
Sons.
Hatcher, L. (1994). A step-by-step approach to using the SAS system for factor analysis and
structural equation modeling. Cary, NC: SAS Institute.
Hoyle, R. (1995). Structural equation modeling : concepts, issues and applications. Thousand
Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Hu, L. & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis:
Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 6(1), 1-55.
Little, R. J. A. & Rubin, D. A. (1987). Statistical analysis with missing data. New York NY:
John Wiley & Sons.
Loehlin, J. C. (1992). Latent variable models. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Publishers.
Rigdon, E. (1997). Approaches to testing identification.
http://www.gsu.edu/~mkteer/identifi.html
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Structural Equation Modeling Using AMOS

Roth, P. (1994). Missing data: A conceptual review for applied psychologists. Personnel
Psychology, 47, 537-560.
Stevens, J. (1996). Applied multivariate statistics for the social sciences. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence
Erlbaum Publishers.
Wheaton, B., Muthn, B., Alwin, D., & Summers, G. (1977). Assessing reliability and stability
in panel models. In D.R. Heise (Eds.): Sociological Methodology. San Fransisco: Jossey-Bass.

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The Division of Statistics + Scientific Computation, The University of Texas at Austin