Structural equation modeling

Abstract

Structural equation modeling (SEM) is an extremely flexible linear-in-parameters multivariate statistical modeling technique. It has been used in transportation research since about 1980, and its use is rapidly accelerating, partially due to the availability of improved software. The number of published studies, now known to be more than 50, has approximately doubled in the past 3 years. This review of SEM is intended to provide an introduction to the field for those who have not used the method, and a compendium of applications for those who wish to compare experiences and avoid the pitfall of reinventing previously published research.