Introduction to Structural Equation Modeling using Mplus

Many researchers in the social and behavioural sciences are using, or want to use, Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) to investigate their theories. Mplus is a popular and flexible software package for doing SEM. We offer a five-day course on how to perform basic SEM analyses using Mplus, where you can interact with Mplus experts.

The course starts with an introduction on how to use Mplus to perform regression analysis and how to ‘communicate’ with Mplus (e.g. how to specify a model, and how to deal with error messages). In the following days, basic models relevant for social scientists will be discussed, including multiple group models, confirmatory factor analysis, and cross-lagged panel models, and important topics such as moderation, mediation and testing for measurement invariance are covered. These days consist of lectures by Mplus experts and computer labs where participants practice with Mplus. On the last day, you can meet with Mplus experts for individual consultation, and work on your own data.

Participants (Research master Students, PhD students, or post-graduate researchers) from a variety of fields, including sociology, psychology, education, human development, marketing, business, biology, medicine, political science, and communication sciences may benefit from the course.

A maximum of 80 participants will be admitted to this course.

Please note that the selection for this course will be done on a first-come-first-served basis. Also note that there is always a one-day delay between the registration system and the information on the website about the availability of places.

For an overview of all our summer school courses offered by the Department of Methodology and Statistics please click here.

The main objective of the course is to acquire a basic understanding of how to use Mplus for SEM as applied in the social and behavioral sciences. Moreover, participants will learn how to analyse datasets with Mplus, to interpret the output and to report the results.