This article presents a multiple-group latent class-profile analysis (LCPA) by taking a Bayesian approach in which a Markov chain Monte Carlo simulation is employed to achieve more robust estimates for latent growth patterns. This article describes and addresses a label-switching problem that involves the LCPA likelihood function, which has…

This article examines the problem of specification error in 2 models for categorical latent variables; the latent class model and the latent Markov model. Specification error in the latent class model focuses on the impact of incorrectly specifying the number of latent classes of the categorical latent variable on measures of model adequacy as…

A linear latent growth curve mixture model is presented which includes switching between growth curves. Switching is accommodated by means of a Markov transition model. The model is formulated with switching as a highly constrained multivariate mixture model and is fitted using the freely available Mx program. The model is illustrated by analyzing…