An Application of Latent Variable Structural Equation Modeling for Experimental Research in Educational Technology

As the technology-enriched learning environments and theoretical constructs involved in instructional design become more sophisticated and complex, a need arises for equally sophisticated analytic methods to research these environments, theories, and models. Thus, this paper illustrates a comprehensive approach for analyzing data arising from experimental studies using structural equation modeling (SEM) procedures that can formulate and test theories regarding how interventions affect observed outcomes, in comparison to traditional MANCOVA design. Researchers in the field of instructional systems and educational technology are encouraged to incorporate this method into their analyses of experimental investigations, because this method allows for a close examination of mediating processes that are responsible for the outcomes observed and for the estimation of both random and correlated measurement errors.