Applications and a Generalization of Mimic Models to Criminological Research

Abstract

This article examines models involving multiple causes of a single latent endogenous variable. Such models, known as MIMIC models, combine psychometric and econometric features into a single unifying framework. Using an example concerning individual's subjective probability of victimization, we show how to estimate parameters in MIMIC models. Moreover, we present a formally equivalent generalization of such models that make explicit a number of implicit restrictions in standard MIMIC models. We show how to implement the more general MIMIC model using Joreskog's LISREL program and discuss the utility of such models to criminological research.