Identifying subgroups: Part 1: Patterns among cross-sectional data

Abstract

Non-experimental designs are common in nursing and allied health research wherein study participants often represent more than a single population or interest. Hence, methods used to identify subgroups and explore heterogeneity have become popular. Latent class mixture modeling is a versatile and person-centered analytic strategy that allows us to study questions about subgroups within samples. In this article, a worked example of latent class mixture modeling is presented to help expose researchers to the nuances of this analytic strategy.

Keywords: Latent class mixture modeling; latent models; structural equation modeling; subgroup analysis.