Important, Yet Overlooked Issues Related to Structural Equation Modeling

Abstract

Structural Equation Modeling was introduced to the IS field in the 90s and is now a commonly used approach for empirical research. Yet, there are many issues that, while commonly understood among statisticians/psychometricians, have escaped the attention of IS researchers. These issues, when understood, can have a dramatic impact on the manner in which research is conducted both in terms of design and interpretation.  This talk will highlight a set of such issues that the author has pointed out over the years. Specifically, the topics to be discussed:

1. Empirical Underdetermination of CBSEM models (e.g. equivalent models)
2. Picture View of SEM versus Model parameterization
3. Separation of Measurement Model and Structural Model contributions to overall CBSEM fit
4. Optimizing Variance explained Versus Covariance explained
5. Moving From A One Winner Takes All Mentality to A Multiple Diagnostic Approach Combining both PLS and CBSEM analyses.

Biography

Wynne W. Chin is the C. T. Bauer Professor of Decision and Information Sciences in the C.T. Bauer College of Business at the University of Houston. He is known for Partial Least Squares Path Modeling with his PLS-Graph software being the first graphical based PLS software developed in 1986 and released widely in 1990. Over his nearly 40 year span as an academic, he was the first to introduce the use of Monte Carlo simulation to the IS discipline for evaluating structural equation modeling algorithms. He also introduced bootstrapping for PLS analyses in 1988, two approaches for 2nd order models (1995), product indicator (1996, 2003) and Orthogonalizing (2010) for interaction effects, PLS nonlinear modeling (1996), multigroup comparison via bootstrap with t-test formula (2000) and permutation (2003, 2016), bootstrap cross-validation (2005), latent marker variable for common method bias (2013), and bootstrap differential path tests (2013). Wynne’s research has received over 117,000 citations, with a top-ten most cited paper in MIS Quarterly and top-five most cited papers in Information Systems Research and ranked third overall in first authored articles published in MISQ and ISR for the period from 1990 through 2016, as well as a Google Scholar H-index of 72 placing him among the most impactful researchers in his field.

Google ranks Wynne as the 7th most cited researchers related to structural equation modeling and 1st for Partial Least Squares. He is also ranked 9,994 in the world in the career database and 3,215 in the world in the 2019 single year database according to a 2019 research article list of the top 6.88 million scientists in the world for all disciplines in 22 fields and 176 subfields . For his main field of Information and Communication Technologies, Wynne ranks 295 and 147 out of 570,025 scientists for career and single year contribution, respectively. Wynne is a founding member of the Diffusion interest group in IT (DIGIT) in 1988 and it’s 2nd president as well as a founding member and first President of the SigADIT (Special Interest Group in Adoption and Diffusion of IT). He was awarded a Fellow of the Association of Information Systems in 2013, garnered an AIS Distinguished Member - Cum Laude designation in 2020, and an AIS Technology Legacy Award (ATLAS) in 2021 recognizing those who have served the community in a significant way through their lifetime.  Dr. Chin recently received the Farfel award (the highest faculty honor at UH). He currently serves as the treasurer for both the Texas Council of Faculty Senates and the NationalCouncil of Faculty Senates of which he is also a founding member.