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Parameter Estimation in Latent Trait Models

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2025

Steven E. Rigdon  and
Robert K. Tsutakawa
Steven E. Rigdon
Affiliation:
University of Missouri
Robert K. Tsutakawa*
Affiliation:
University of Missouri
*
Requests for reprints should be sent to Robert K. Tsutakawa, Dept. of Statistics, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211.
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Abstract

Latent trait models for binary responses to a set of test items are considered from the point of view of estimating latent trait parameters θ= (θ1, …, θn) and item parameters β=(β1, …, βk), where βj may be vector valued. With θ considered a random sample from a prior distribution with parameter ϕ, the estimation of (θ, β) is studied under the theory of the EM algorithm. An example and computational details are presented for the Rasch model.

Keywords

EM algorithmempirical Bayeslatent traitRasch model
Type
Original Paper
Information
Psychometrika , Volume 48 , Issue 4 , December 1983 , pp. 567 - 574
Copyright
Copyright © 1983 The Psychometric Society

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Footnotes

This work was supported by Contract No. N00014-81-K-0265, Modification No. P00002, from Personnel and Training Research Programs, Psychological Sciences Division, Office of Naval Research. The authors wish to thank an anonymous reviewer for several valuable suggestions.

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