About this Book

This book showcases student projects focused on finding and reviewing an article that used Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to identify an equity issue or advance social justice in any domain (e.g., education, psychology, health, business). Any application of SEM (e.g., CFA, path modeling, full SEM, invariance testing) that helped to expose, measure, remedy, or explain inequities or social injustice was appropriate.

Purpose of the Book

This project encouraged the student authors, and now you the reader, to actively consider the impact of oppressive systems on various marginalized groups and how quantitative methods can be used to highlight these issues, rather than separating quantitative methods from the lived experiences of individuals and broader societal concerns. Another key focus of this project was to practice “speaking the language” of quantitative methods, particularly SEM, as methodological expertise is a crucial way to promote equity, inclusion, and social justice in environments where proficiency with advanced quantitative concepts and techniques is privileged, valued, and expected.

Value of the Book

Pressbooks allowed the chapter authors to create and share digital learning materials as an open educational resource (OER), offering flexibility in how content is accessed and used. Our goal was to share these examples of “SEM for Good” with the larger assessment and measurement community and prospective quant/measurement students, as there is a need in the field for this type of resource.