--- title: "LMS and QML approaches" output: rmarkdown::html_vignette vignette: > %\VignetteIndexEntry{LMS and QML approaches} %\VignetteEngine{knitr::rmarkdown} %\VignetteEncoding{UTF-8} --- ```{r, include = FALSE} EVAL_DEFAULT <- FALSE knitr::opts_chunk$set( collapse = TRUE, comment = "#>", eval = EVAL_DEFAULT ) ``` ```{r setup} library(modsem) ``` # The Latent Moderated Structural Equations (LMS) and the Quasi Maximum Likelihood (QML) Approach Both the `LMS` and `QML` approaches work on most models, but interaction effects with endogenous variables can be tricky to estimate (see the [vignette](https://modsem.org/articles/interaction_two_etas.html)). Both approaches, particularly the `LMS` approach, are computationally intensive and are partially implemented in C++ (using `Rcpp` and `RcppArmadillo`). Additionally, starting parameters are estimated using the double-centering approach, and the means of the observed variables are used to generate good starting parameters for faster convergence. If you want to monitor the progress of the estimation process, you can use `verbose = TRUE`. ## A Simple Example Here is an example of the `LMS` approach for a simple model. By default, the `summary()` function calculates fit measures compared to a null model (i.e., the same model without an interaction term). ```{r} library(modsem) m1 <- ' # Outer Model X =~ x1 X =~ x2 + x3 Z =~ z1 + z2 + z3 Y =~ y1 + y2 + y3 # Inner Model Y ~ X + Z Y ~ X:Z ' lms1 <- modsem(m1, oneInt, method = "lms") summary(lms1, standardized = TRUE) # Standardized estimates ``` Here is the same example using the `QML` approach: ```{r} qml1 <- modsem(m1, oneInt, method = "qml") summary(qml1) ``` ## A More Complicated Example Below is an example of a more complex model based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB), which includes two endogenous variables and an interaction between an endogenous and exogenous variable. When estimating more complex models with the `LMS` approach, it is recommended to increase the number of nodes used for numerical integration. By default, the number of nodes is set to 16, but this can be increased using the `nodes` argument. The `nodes` argument has no effect on the `QML` approach. When there is an interaction effect between an endogenous and exogenous variable, it is recommended to use at least 32 nodes for the `LMS` approach. You can also obtain robust standard errors by setting `robust.se = TRUE` in the `modsem()` function. **Note**: If you want the `LMS` approach to produce results as similar as possible to Mplus, you should increase the number of nodes (e.g., `nodes = 100`). ```{r} # ATT = Attitude # PBC = Perceived Behavioral Control # INT = Intention # SN = Subjective Norms # BEH = Behavior tpb <- ' # Outer Model (Based on Hagger et al., 2007) ATT =~ att1 + att2 + att3 + att4 + att5 SN =~ sn1 + sn2 PBC =~ pbc1 + pbc2 + pbc3 INT =~ int1 + int2 + int3 BEH =~ b1 + b2 # Inner Model (Based on Steinmetz et al., 2011) INT ~ ATT + SN + PBC BEH ~ INT + PBC BEH ~ INT:PBC ' lms2 <- modsem(tpb, TPB, method = "lms", nodes = 32) summary(lms2) qml2 <- modsem(tpb, TPB, method = "qml") summary(qml2, standardized = TRUE) # Standardized estimates ```