MONDAY SYMPOSIUM IN MEASUREMENT AND STATISTICS (MSMS)
Department of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology
Fall 2021
Some Progress and Problems in Bayesian SEM
Join via Zoom
The talk will involve a combination of research and software on Bayesian structural equation models, with some material being relevant to general Bayesian modeling in psychology. I will say some things about how the blavaan package was started and where it is going in the future. Then I will say some things about research that has stemmed from development of blavaan, including some problems that are not fully solved. Topics include speed/efficiency of model estimation, methods for computing Bayesian information criteria, and methods for specifying proper prior distributions. Finally, I will discuss the collaborative work that can arise from open source software.
Dr. Ed Merkle is a Professor of Psychological Sciences at the University of Missouri. His research involves a mix of psychometric modeling and the experimentation/modeling that arises from cognitive science and mathematical psychology. His specific research includes Bayesian latent variable models, forecasting and subjective probability, psychometric measurement, and statistical modeling.