Possibilities and potentials of the structural equation modeling in analysis of between-group differences: an example from the sport motivation research

Abstract

In this article we present the possibilities and potentials of the structural equation modeling in analysis of between-group differences. Using the illustrative example from the sport motivation research we demonstrate some useful features of the structural equation modeling that might have a substantial impact on the interpretation of our results.

Keywords

• Factor analysis
• invariance
• differential item functioning
• multigroup analysis
• theoretical construct
• latent variable