title: Structural equation modeling of paired-comparison and ranking data.
abstract: L. L. Thurstone's (1927) model provides a powerful framework for modeling individual differences in choice behavior. An overview of Thurstonian models for comparative data is provided, including the classical Case V and Case III models as well as more general choice models with unrestricted and factor-analytic covariance structures. A flow chart summarizes the model selection process. The authors show how to embed these models within a more familiar structural equation modeling (SEM) framework. The different special cases of Thurstone's model can be estimated with a popular SEM statistical package, including factor analysis models for paired comparisons and rankings. Only minor modifications are needed to accommodate both types of data. As a result, complex models for comparative judgments can be both estimated and tested efficiently.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Psychology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain. amaydeu@ub.edu
authors.forename: Albert
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Maydeu-Olivares
authors.forename: Ulf
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Böckenholt
mesh_terms: D002755:Choice Behavior; D003625:Data Collection / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D016555:Matched-Pair Analysis; D008432:Mathematical Computing; D015233:Models, Statistical; D012984:Software; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric