Customer Reviews

Principles and Practice of Structural Equation Modeling, Second Edition (Methodology In The Social Sciences)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Kline's book provides a very readable introduction to and explanation of structural equation modeling. The book does not include statistical proofs, so it would not serve well as an advanced text. But if you are looking for a book that explains what SEM is and how it fits within the larger framework of inferential statistics, I recommend it.

Great book for those wanting to learn Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). From a beginners point-of-view I've found it helpful in integrating regression with SEM models.

This one should be the first book you will get if your first concern is to understand SEM rather than to jump into the practice and learn to use SEM Software without "wasting(!)time on learning the basics. Accompanied by a software-specific book would compose the best bundle for a good start.

A final note: I suggest you not skip the second and the third chapters which review the basic statistical concepts.

Straightforward and easy to read are not descriptors often associated with statistic textbooks, but Kline delivers it up. He included an excellent review chapter on basic principles before launching into the logistics of path analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and other procedures of the SEM family. The interpretation sections are pragmatic and the examples used to illustrate the methods are intuitative and effortlessly followed.

When Joreskog and his colleagues introduced LISREL into social science discourse, my dissertation director was despondent. An old fogy at 40!

If he's alive today, however, I'm sure he feels much better. He'd be 64 now, and chances are he's had a chance to read Rex Kline's Principles and Practice of Structural Equation Modeling. Coupled with new, much more user-friendly software such as AMOS and CALIS, Kline's SEM book is not only readable but almost easy, while at the same time being comprehensive in coverage.

I never thought I'd see a book that presents not only the order condition for identification, but the rank condition, as well, without using matrix algebra. But Kline pulls it off. This example exemplifies Kline's talent for making really complex statistical procedures eminently accessible.

If my dissertation director is still working, I'm sure he's no longer intimidated by SEM, and he's using it to estimate informative models. In large measure, I'd be willing to guess, his new-found analytical power is due to Rex Kline's excellent textbook. I've benefited enormously from reading it.

Well...This book is as understandable as statistics can be. You will learn about the advantages of using mathematical models and how they represent reality way better than doing group comparisons. Highly recommended.

AMOS can seem so simple that it is confusing. Where are the obfuscating command lines that we used to love? If you know and loathed another program in the same ilk, you may have problems with the ease of the AMOS graphic interface and command language. If this is the case, then this book is for you.

I am a manager of a team of statisticians that work in Market Research. This book has helped my team of applied statisticians to understand the concepts involved in SEM as the book is very clear and makes few assumptions of the readers' knowledge. Mathematical formulas are kept to a minimum, with any that are shown fully described.

This is not to say the book is just an introductory book for beginners as it has many advanced insights and excellent examples that a more experienced modeller can learn from. It is one of the most read books in our library as the author makes the subject compelling to read and every time it is reread you learn more from it as it works on many levels.

It is an essential book to have on SEM from a conceptual and practical point of view. Though it is not a book for someone wanting to know the mathematics behind creating the models in depth.

I'm not amazing at stats -- I pulled As in my grad classes, but it doesn't seem to stick with me. I wanted to write my dissertation proposal this spring/summer but won't take an SEM course until next year, so I needed some resources to teach myself. I was able to sit down with a pen and this book, and actually feel like I was getting a good sense of how to do SEM. I recently learned that this book is used in the SEM course I want to take! Not sure how updated the 3rd version is...

Great book to use as a supplement to the LISREL 8 manuals. It's easy to read and provides references if you need to investigate a specific issue in more detail.