This note is concerned with examining the relationship between within-group and between-group variances in two-level nested designs. A latent variable modeling approach is outlined that permits point and interval estimation of their ratio and allows their comparison in a multilevel study. The procedure can also be used to test various hypotheses…

A latent variable modeling procedure that can be used to evaluate intraclass correlation coefficients in two-level settings with discrete response variables is discussed. The approach is readily applied when the purpose is to furnish confidence intervals at prespecified confidence levels for these coefficients in setups with binary or ordinal…

A procedure for examining essential unidimensionality in multicomponent measuring instruments is discussed. The method is based on an application of latent variable modeling and is concerned with the extent to which a common factor for all components of a given scale accounts for their correlations. The approach provides point and interval…

Interval estimation of intraclass correlation coefficients in hierarchical designs is discussed within a latent variable modeling framework. A method accomplishing this aim is outlined, which is applicable in two-level studies where participants (or generally lower-order units) are clustered within higher-order units. The procedure can also be…

A directly applicable latent variable modeling procedure for classical item analysis is outlined. The method allows one to point and interval estimate item difficulty, item correlations, and item-total correlations for composites consisting of categorical items. The approach is readily employed in empirical research and as a by-product permits…

A latent variable modeling approach for examining population similarities and differences in observed variable relationship and mean indexes in incomplete data sets is discussed. The method is based on the full information maximum likelihood procedure of model fitting and parameter estimation. The procedure can be employed to test group identities…