Past Short Courses

Short Courses in Detroit, Michigan, June 2017 - Two Sessions, Twelve Courses

Hosted by Wayne State University

Session 1: June 5-7, Six Courses | Session 2: June 8-10, Six Courses

Short Course Sessions and Groupings

We offer two sessions which allows course participants the opportunity to take two back-to-back courses that compliment one another. All courses in a session are taught concurrently, so a participant can take only one course per session.

Short Course Topics, Instructors and Summaries

Complete Course Listing

Click a course name to see more info.

Session One Monday June 5 (all day), Tuesday June 6 (all day), and Wednesday June 7 (AM half day)

Session Two Thursday June 8 (all day), Friday June 9 (all day), and Saturday June 10 (half day)

"Introduction to Structural Equation Methods" - Dr. Larry J Williams "Advanced SEM I: Measurement Invariance, Latent Growth Modeling & Nonrecursive Modeling" - Dr. Robert Vandenberg "Introduction to Multilevel Analysis" - Dr. James LeBreton "Introduction to R" - Dr. Scott Tonidandel "Intro to Big Data and Data Mining with R" - Dr. Jeff Stanton "Intermediate Regression: Multivariate/Logistic, Mediation/Moderation" - Dr. Ron Landis

"Intermediate SEM: Model Evaluation" - Dr. Larry J Williams "Advanced SEM II: Missing Data Issue in SEM, Multi-Level SEM and Latent Interactions" - Dr.Robert Vandenberg "Advanced Multilevel Analysis" -Dr. Paul Bliese "Multivariate Statistics with R" - Dr. Steve Culpepper "Analysis of Big Data" - Dr. Fred Oswald "Advanced Regression: Alternatives to Difference Scores, Polynomial and Response Surface Methods" - Dr. Jeff Edwards

Session 1: June 5-7, Seven Courses

“Introduction to Structural Equation Methods"

Dr. Larry J Williams, University of North Dakota

Course Description
The Introduction to Structural Equation Methods Short Course provides (a) introductory coverage of latent variable techniques, including confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation methods with latent variables, (b) discussion of special issues related to the application of these techniques in organizational research, and (c) a comparison of these techniques with traditional analytical approaches. This Short Course will contain a balance of lecture and hands-on data analysis with examples and assignments, and emphasis will be placed on the application of SEM techniques to organizational research problems. Participants will:

• develop skills required to conduct confirmatory latent variable data analysis, based on currently accepted practices, involving topics and research issues common to organizational research.
• learn the conceptual and statistical assumptions underlying confirmatory latent variable analysis.
  learn how to implement data analysis techniques using software programs for confirmatory modeling. Special emphasis will also be placed on the generation and interpretation of results using the contemporary software programs LISREL, MPlus, and Amos.
• learn how latent variable techniques can be applied to contemporary research issues in organizational research.
• learn how the application of current latent variable techniques in organizational research differs from traditional techniques used in this literature
• complete in-class exercises using their preferred package (LISREL, MPlus, and Amos)

Required Software: LISREL (free trial edition), MPlus or Amos

Note: For those without current access to an SEM package, LISREL has a free trial edition that you should download no earlier than 1 week before class. The MPlus demo is not adequate for this course.

"Advanced SEM I: Measurement Invariance, Latent Growth Modeling & Nonrecursive Modeling"

Dr. Robert Vandenberg, University of Georgia

Course Description
The short course covers three advanced structural equation modeling (SEM) topics: (a) testing measurement invariance; (b) latent growth modeling; and (c) evaluating reciprocal relationships in SEM. The instructor uses the Mplus SEM software package throughout the workshop. To get maximum benefit from this short course, the participants should have the full version of Mplus loaded on their laptops and bring the laptop with them to the course. The instructor lectures about half of the time with the remaining time devoted to having participants run examples with actual data provided by the instructor. Participants go home with usable examples and syntax. The measurement invariance testing section focuses on the procedures as outlined in the Vandenberg and Lance (2000) Organizational Research Methods article. Namely, we will cover the 9 invariance tests starting with the tests of equal variance-covariance matrices and ending with tests of latent mean differences. Other outcomes of covering these tests are how to use Mplus syntax, how to do multi-sample analyses, and also how to test hypothesized (a priori) group mean differences but using the latent means of the latent variables within each group. Thus, the first section accomplishes much more than the just the measurement invariance tests. The workshop then advances to operationalizing latent growth models within the SEM framework. Essentially, this is how to use one's longitudinal data to actually capture the dynamic processes in one's theory. Thus, it is very, very different than cross-sectional tests where one is stuck in one point in time. Again, this is what goes on at the surface level, but the participant will also be exposed to modeling how the change in one variable impacts change in another. We will also use mixed modeling. And at the end of it, I introduce the participants to latent profile modeling with latent growth curves. The final piece is the testing of models with feedback loops via an SEM-Journal article by Edward Rigdon (1995). We will go through his 4 different models and what they mean.

Required Software: MPlus (order the full version, try the free demo version)

"Introduction to Multilevel Analysis"

Dr. James LeBreton, Pennsylvania State University

Course Description
This course is aimed at faculty and students who are relatively new to multilevel theory, measurement, and analysis. It will review basic issues associated with the development and testing of multilevel theories. Although the focus will be on issues pertaining to multilevel theory and measurement (e.g., multilevel constructs, multilevel construct validation, aggregation and composition models), we will also discuss general issues associated multilevel analysis. Examples will be presented and discussed using both SPSS and HLM. The R package will be introduced, explained, and emphasized during this short course in preparation for the advanced short course in Session II. Specific topics will include:

• Module 1: Multilevel Theory: Constructs, Inferences, and Composition Models
• Module 2: Multilevel Measurement: Aggregation, Aggregation Bias, & Cross-Level Inference
• Module 3: Multilevel Measurement: Estimating Interrater Agreement & Reliability
  • Examples using SPSS Software
• Module 4: Multilevel Measurement and Multilevel Modeling: A Simple Illustration of Analyzing Composite Variables in Hierarchical Linear Models
  • Examples using SPSS, HLM, and R Software
• Module 5: Wrap up and Final Q & A

Required Software: R ( download here ), SPSS ( free trial version ), HLM ( student version ),

"Introduction to R"

Dr. Scott Tonidandel, Davidson College

Course Description
This course will provide a gentle introduction to the R computing platform and the R-Studio interface. We will cover the basics of R such as importing and exporting data, understanding R data structures, and R packages. You will also learn strategies for data manipulation within R (compute, recode, selecting cases, etc.) and best practices for data management. We will work through examples of how to conduct basic statistical analyses in R (descriptive, correlation, regression, T-test, ANOVA) and graph those results. Finally, we will explore user-defined functions in R and lay the groundwork for understanding how to perform more complex analyses presented in later CARMA short courses.

Required Software: R (download here)

“Intro to Big Data and Data Mining with R”

Dr. Jeff Stanton, Syracuse University

Course Description

Big data has been a buzzword for several years both in academia and industry. Although the term is vague and is certainly overused, it does encompass some interesting new ideas and unfamiliar analytical techniques. Notable among these is “data mining,” a family of analytical methods for clustering, classifying, and predicting that go a step beyond the statistical methods used by many social science researchers. In this short course, we will discuss the dimensions of big data and the conceptual steps involved in data mining. Students are welcome to bring their own data sets for experimentation on their own, but this is not required.

We will use the open source statistical processing language, R, for most of the work we do in the course. Extensibility is the hallmark of R; its system of add-on packages provides access to an unequaled range of analytical tools and techniques. You do not have to be an expert in R to take this course, although you will find the course easier if you also take the introduction to R offered by CARMA earlier in the week. Prior to the course, I will ask students to install R on their personal computers and review the first few chapters of my free eTextbook, An Introduction to Data Science. Depending on the interests and preferences of the students, we also use the Rattle or R-Studio graphical user interfaces.

The ideal student will have an interest in using R, knowledge of some basic descriptive and inferential statistics, and some curiosity about exploring alternative, empirically driven strategies for analysis of large data sets. No prior experience with data mining is required and students who participate successfully in this short course can expect to learn enough about data mining to begin experimenting with these tools in research or teaching.

Required Software: R (download here), R Studio (download here)

"Intermediate Regression: Multivariate/Logistic, Mediation/Moderation" "

Ron Landis, Illinois Institute of Technology

Course Description
This short course will begin with a brief review of linear regression, followed by consideration of advanced topics including multivariate regression, use of polynomial regression, logistic regression, and the general linear model. We will pay particular attention to using regression to test models involving mediation and moderation. For all topics, examples will be discussed and assignments completed using either data provided by the instructor or by the short course participants.

Required Software: TBA

Session 2: June 8-10, Six Courses

“Intermediate SEM: Model Evaluation"

Dr. Larry J Williams, Wayne State University

Course Description
This course is aimed at faculty and students with an introductory understanding of structural equation methods who seek a better understanding of the challenging process of making judgments about the adequacy of their models. Those who attend should have experience in fitting structural equation models with software such as LISREL, MPlus, EQS, or AMOS. This experience requirement can be met by completion of the Introduction to SEM Short Course. Attendees will be expected to bring their own laptop computers installed with their SEM software, and they should also know how to import data from an SPSS save file into their SEM software program. Attendees will learn out to interpret and report results from SEM analyses, and how to conduct model comparisons to obtain information relevant to inferences about their models, as well as advantages and disadvantages of different approaches to model evaluation. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own data for use during parts of the short course.

The course will consist of five sections, with each section having a lecture and lab component using exercises and data provided by the instructor:
• Review of model specification and parameter estimation
• Overview of model evaluation
• Logic and computations for goodness-of-fit measures
• Analysis of residuals and latent variables
• Model comparison strategies

Required Software: Your preferred SEM software package, SPSS (free trial version)

"Advanced SEM II: Missing Data Issue in SEM, Multi-Level SEM and Latent Interactions"

Dr. Robert Vandenberg, University of Georgia

Course Description
The workshop covers three advanced structural equation modeling (SEM) topics: (a) multilevel modeling; (b) latent interactions; and (c) dealing with missing data in SEM applications. The instructor uses the Mplus SEM software package throughout the workshop. To get maximum benefit from this short course, the participants should have the full version of Mplus loaded on their laptops and bring the laptop with them to the course. The instructor lectures about half of the time with the remaining time devoted to having participants run examples with actual data provided by the instructor. Participants go home with usable examples and syntax. The multilevel modeling section starts out using observed variables only, and no latent variables. Parallels are drawn in this approach and the other packages such as HLM. The main purpose here, though, is to teach participants the basics of multilevel modeling such as aggregation, cross-level interactions and cross-level direct effects. The workshop advances to using latent variables in a multi-level environment. Particular focus will be on multilevel confirmatory factor analysis whereby separate measurement models are estimated at both the within and between levels. The topic then switches to multilevel path modeling with emphasis on between vs. within modeling, and the estimation of cross-level interaction and direct effects among latent variables. The latent interaction section focuses on specifying interactions among latent variables in SEM models. This section starts out with a review of basic interaction testing within a regression environment (using Mplus). From this foundation, participants will move into specifying interactions among latent variables and how to test hypotheses with interactions. And from this point, the workshop will move into moderated-mediation but from the SEM perspective. The final segment of the short course deals with missing data. A great deal of time at the beginning is spent on missing data patterns and why they occur. The workshop then moves into the old methods of dealing with missing data such as listwise and pairwise deletion, and mean or regression based imputation. The disadvantages of those methods are discussed. We then move into covering the newer methods for dealing with missing data, multiple imputation, and full information maximum likelihood. Participants will be showed how to utilize the latter methods in Mplus.

Required Software: MPlus (order the full version, try the free demo version)

"Advanced Multilevel Analysis"

Dr. Paul Bliese, University of South Carolina

Course Description
The CARMA Advanced Multilevel Analysis short course provides both (1) the theoretical foundation, and (2) the resources and skills necessary to conduct advanced multilevel analyses. Emphasis will be placed on techniques for longitudinal data. The course covers both basic models (e.g., 2-level mixed and growth models), and more advanced topics (e.g., 3-level models, discontinuous growth models, and multilevel moderated-mediation models). Practical exercises, with real-world research data, are conducted in R, with accompanying output from MPlus provided for some examples. Participants who prefer SAS, SPSS, or MPlus and have experience with these programs have the option of completing some assignments with these programs. Participants are encouraged to also bring datasets to the course and apply the principles to their specific areas of research. The course is best suited for faculty and graduate students who have at least some foundational understanding of conducting multilevel analyses.

• Module 1: 2-Level Mixed Models: Cross-Level Main Effects & Interactions
  • Introduction to multilevel modeling in R and MPlus
  • Exercise 1a: Mixed modeling in R
  • Exercise 1a: Mixed modeling in MPlus
• Module 2: Analyzing change and growth
  • Exercise 2a: Growth modeling in R
  • Exercise 2a: Growth modeling in MPlus
• Module 3: Bayes Estimates and lme4
  • Bayes Estimates using lme in R
  • Specifying models in lme4
• Module 4: Discontinuous growth models
  • Examples using R
• Module 5: 3-level models; moderated-mediation models
  • Examples using R and MPlus

Required Software: R (download here)

“Multivariate Statistics with R”

Dr. Steven Culpepper, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Course Description
This course continues the introduction to R from the first session by covering advanced topics related to multivariate statistics. We will cover topics related to data management for multivariate data and will provide an overview of plotting and visualizing multivariate data in R. Specific learning outcomes include learning how to conduct analyses involving:

• Multiple regression and diagnostics
• Binary, multinomial, and ordinal logistic regression
• Exploratory factor analysis and principal components
• Multivariate regression, canonical correlation, and MANOVA
• Topics in statistical computation (e.g., bootstrapping, Monte Carlo simulation)
• Structural equation modeling with the lavaan package
• Reproducible research for quantitative reports

The session will provide participants with some discussion of necessary background knowledge and practical exercises.

Required Software: R (download here), R Studio (download here), and tex (for Windows: http://miktex.org/ , for OS X http://www.tug.org/mactex/, for Ubuntu/Debian (Linux): apt-get install texlive or http://www.tug.org/texlive/ )

"Analysis of Big Data"

Dr. Fred Oswald, Rice University

Course Description

This short course provides students with hands-on skills for developing and running predictive models for relevant to 'big data' in organizations. A range of predictive models will be covered: e.g., lasso and elastic net regression, random forest, stochastic gradient boosted trees, and support vector machines. R and all required R packages need to be set up on your laptop beforehand; the instructor will provide set-up instructions and guidance in advance; other data, materials, and assignments will be provided by the instructor (code, files).

Required Software: TBA

“Advanced Regression: Alternatives to Difference Scores, Polynomial and Response Surface Methods”

Dr. Jeff Edwards, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

Course Description
For decades, difference scores have been used in studies of fit, similarity, and agreement in organizational research. Despite their widespread use, difference scores have numerous methodological problems. These problems can be overcome by using polynomial regression and response surface methodology to test hypotheses that motivate the use of difference scores. These methods avoid problems with difference scores, capture the effects difference scores are intended to represent, and can examine relationships that are more complex than those implied by difference scores.

This short course will review problems with difference scores, introduce polynomial regression and response surface methodology, and illustrate the application of these methods using empirical examples. Specific topics to be addressed include: (a) types of difference scores; (b) questions that difference scores are intended to address; (c) problems with difference scores; (d) polynomial regression as an alternative to difference scores; (e) testing constraints imposed by difference scores; (f) analyzing quadratic regression equations using response surface methodology; (g) difference scores as dependent variables; and (h) answers to frequently asked questions.

Required Software: TBA

Accommodations/ Overnight Lodging

Lodging: On-Campus Housing

For ease of lodging, CARMA has a contract with Wayne State University in which our short course members are permitted to pay a fee and stay on-campus in a university residence hall during the duration of the courses. The on-campus housing location is within 2 blocks of the building the short courses are held within (Prentis Building), and is a safe and affordable option as all rooms are available for under $25.00 a night and Wayne State University has a very safe campus. Photos of the housing facilities as well as a full list of features is available here.

Length of Stay Information:

Note that the following dates are NOT flexible. If you will be arriving in Detroit prior to Sunday June 4 or staying later than the dates outlined below, you will be responsible for your own accommodations.

• Session I Attendees: Check in Sunday June 4. Stay the night Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and check out Wednesday June 7.
• Session II Attendees: Check in Wednesday June 7. Stay the night Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and check out Saturday June 10.
• BOTH Session I AND Session II Attendees: Check in Sunday June 4. Stay the night Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and check out Saturday June 10.

Total Price Information:

Your options for housing depend on 1) if you are staying for one session or two sessions and 2) if you want a private room or if you want to share a room with another individual.

• For 3-nights (one Session), one person room: $94.00
• For 3-nights (one Session), two person room: $77.50
• For 6-nights (both Sessions), one person room: $166.00
• For 6-nights (both Sessions), two person room: $133.00

Price Breakdown (for your information):

• One person room: Room Fee ($24.00 per person/per night)*Number of nights + Mandatory Access Card ($2.00) + Mandatory Linen Packet ($10.00) + CARMA Processing Fee ($10.00)
• Two person room: Room Fee ($18.50 per person/per night)*Number of nights + Mandatory Access Card ($2.00) + Mandatory Linen Packet ($10.00) + CARMA Processing Fee ($10.00)
  • Linen Packet includes: 1 pillow, 1 blanket, 1 sheet set, 1 bath towel, 1 washcloth.

How to Reserve a Residence Hall Room:

1. Log in to your CARMA User Account.
2. If you do not yet have a CARMA User Account, create one here.
3. Once you are logged in, make sure you are in the "User Area" (red navigation bar at the top of the webpage has User Area located on it).
4. Select "Purchase Short Courses" on the right side of the webpage.
5. Select either the Individual Housing Package OR the Shared Housing Package from the drop-down menu (Note: If you are sharing a room, make sure both people purchase housing within their own CARMA website user accounts.)
6. Select either Session I, Session II, or Both Sessions.

Deadline for On-Campus Housing Registration:

All reservations MUST be made by May 19, 2017. No changes can be made after this date.

Housing Cancellation Policy:

If an emergency arises and you are unable to attend, we will refund you the full amount you paid for housing as long as we are notified prior to May 19, 2017. If we are notified after this date, unfortunately we will not be able to complete a refund. Please understand that the money we receive from the housing registration is directly given to Wayne State University therefore we do not have the ability to issue a refund after this date.

Hotel Accommodations

If you would prefer to stay in a hotel, we have a few recommendations for you:

• The Inn on Ferry Street. This is a boutique hotel located just 3 blocks from where instruction will be held on campus. It is located in a historic district in Detroit. Click here for more information. Note: There is a limited set of rooms available at the Inn on Ferry Street. Therefore we recommend you make a reservation immediately if you would like to stay there.
• There are other lodging options located in Downtown Detroit, about two or three miles from Wayne State University (the site of the CARMA short courses). CARMA is not working with or endorsing these hotels, we are simply recommending them based on their proximity and the fact that they offer complimentary shuttle services to Wayne State University.
  • Doubletree Suites by Hilton Hotels Detroit Downtown - Fort Shelby
  • Holiday Inn Express Detroit Downtown