modelcompK: CDM fit comparison - dimensionality assessment method

In cdmTools: Useful Tools for Cognitive Diagnosis Modeling

CDM fit comparison - dimensionality assessment method

Description

A procedure for determining the number of attributes underlying CDM using model fit comparison. For each number of attributes under exploration, a Q-matrix is estimated from the data using the discrete factor loading method (Wang, Song, & Ding, 2018), which can be further validated using the Hull method (Nájera, Sorrel, de la Torre, & Abad, 2020). Then, a CDM is fitted to the data using the resulting Q-matrix, and several fit indices are computed. After the desired range of number of attributes has been explored, the fit indices are compared. A suggested number of attributes is given for each fit index. The AIC index should be preferred among the other fit indices. For further details, see Nájera, Abad, & Sorrel (2021). This function can be also used by directly providing different Q-matrices (instead of estimating them from the data) in order to compare their fit and select the most appropriate Q-matrix. Note that, if Q-matrices are provided, this function will no longer serve as a dimensionality assessment method, but just as an automated model comparison procedure.

Usage

modelcompK(
  dat,
  exploreK = 1:7,
  Qs = NULL,
  stop = "none",
  val.Q = TRUE,
  estQ.args = list(criterion = "row", cor = "tet", rotation = "oblimin", fm = "uls"),
  valQ.args = list(index = "PVAF", iterative = "test.att", maxitr = 5, CDMconv = 0.01),
  verbose = TRUE
)

Arguments

dat	A N individuals x J items (matrix or data.frame). Missing values need to be coded as NA.
exploreK	Number of attributes to explore. The default is from 1 to 7 attributes.
Qs	A list of Q-matrices to compare in terms of fit. If Qs is used, exploreK is ignored.
stop	A fit index to use for stopping the procedure if a model leads to worse fit than a simpler one. This can be useful for saving time without exploring the whole exploreK when it is probable that the correct dimensionality has been already visited. It includes "AIC", "BIC", "CAIC", "SABIC", "M2", "SRMSR", "RMSEA2", or "sig.item.pairs". The latter represents the number of items that show bad fit with at least another item based on the transformed correlations (see itemfit function in the GDINA package; Ma & de la Torre, 2020). It can be also "none", which means that the whole exploreK will be examined. The default is "none".
val.Q	Validate the estimated Q-matrices using the Hull method? Note that validating the Q-matrix is expected to increase its quality, but the computation time will increase. The default is TRUE.
estQ.args	A list of arguments for the discrete factor loading empirical Q-matrix estimation method (see the estQ function): criterion Dichotomization criterion to transform the factor loading matrix into the Q-matrix. The possible options include "row" (for row means), "col" (for column means), "loaddiff" (for the procedure based on loading differences), or a value between 0 and 1 (for a specific threshold). The default is "row". cor Type of correlations to use. It includes "cor" (for Pearson correlations) and "tet" (for tetrachoric/polychoric correlations), among others. See fa function from the psych R package for additional details. The default is "tet". rotation Rotation procedure to use. It includes "oblimin", "varimax", and "promax", among others. An oblique rotation procedure is usually recommended. See fa function from the psych R package for additional details. The default is "oblimin". fm Factoring method to use. It includes "uls" (for unweighted least squares), "ml" (for maximum likelihood), and "wls" (for weighted least squares), among others. See fa function from the psych R package for additional details. The default is "uls".
valQ.args	A list of arguments for the Hull empirical Q-matrix validation method. Only applicable if valQ = TRUE (see the valQ function): index What index to use. It includes "PVAF" or "R2". The default is "PVAF". iterative (Iterative) implementation procedure. It includes "none" (for non-iterative), "test" (for test-level iterations), "test.att" (for test-level iterations modifying the least possible amount of q-entries in each iteration), and "item" (for item-level iterations). The default is "test.att". maxitr Maximum number of iterations if an iterative procedure has been selected. The default is 5. CDMconv Convergence criteria for the CDM estimations between iterations (only if an iterative procedure has been selected). The default is 0.01.
verbose	Show progress? The default is TRUE.

Value

modelcompK returns an object of class modelcompK.

sug.K

The suggested number of attributes for each fit index (vector). Only if Qs = NULL.

sel.Q

The suggested Q-matrix for each fit index (vector).

fit

The fit indices for each fitted model (matrix).

exp.exploreK

Explored dimensionality (vector). It can be different from exploreK if stop has been used.

usedQ

Q-matrices used to fit each model (list). They will be the estimated (and validated) Q-matrices if Qs = NULL. Otherwise, they will be Qs.

specifications

Function call specifications (list).

Author(s)

Pablo Nájera, Universidad Pontificia Comillas
Miguel A. Sorrel, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
Francisco J. Abad, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid

References

Ma, W., & de la Torre, J. (2020). GDINA: An R package for cognitive diagnosis modeling. Journal of Statistical Software, 93(14). https://doi.org/10.18637/jss.v093.i14

Nájera, P., Abad, F. J., & Sorrel, M. A. (2021). Determining the number of attributes in cognitive diagnosis modeling. Frontiers in Psychology, 12:614470. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.614470

Nájera, P., Sorrel, M. A., de la Torre, J., & Abad, F. J. (2020). Balancing fit and parsimony to improve Q-matrix validation. British Journal of Mathematical and Statistical Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1111/bmsp.12228

Wang, W., Song, L., & Ding, S. (2018). An exploratory discrete factor loading method for Q-matrix specification in cognitive diagnosis models. In: M. Wilberg, S. Culpepper, R. Janssen, J. González, & D. Molenaar (Eds.), Quantitative Psychology. IMPS 2017. Springer Proceedings in Mathematics & Statistics (Vol. 233, pp. 351-362). Springer.

Examples

library(GDINA)
dat <- sim30GDINA$simdat
Q <- sim30GDINA$simQ

#-------------------------------------
# Assess dimensionality from CDM data
#-------------------------------------
mcK <- modelcompK(dat = dat, exploreK = 4:7, stop = "AIC", val.Q = TRUE, verbose = TRUE)
mcK$sug.K # Check suggested number of attributes by each fit index
mcK$fit # Check fit indices for each K explored
sug.Q <- mcK$usedQ[[paste0("K", mcK$sug.K["AIC"])]] # Suggested Q-matrix by AIC
sug.Q <- orderQ(sug.Q, Q)$order.Q # Reorder Q-matrix attributes
mean(sug.Q == Q) # Check similarity with the generating Q-matrix

#--------------------------------------------------
# Automatic fit comparison of competing Q-matrices
#--------------------------------------------------
trueQ <- Q
missQ1 <- missQ(Q, .10, seed = 123)$miss.Q
missQ2 <- missQ(Q, .20, seed = 456)$miss.Q
missQ3 <- missQ(Q, .30, seed = 789)$miss.Q
Qs <- list(trueQ, missQ1, missQ2, missQ3)
mc <- modelcompK(dat = dat, Qs = Qs, verbose = TRUE)
mc$sel.Q # Best-fitting Q-matrix for each fit index
mc$fit # Check fit indices for each Q explored

cdmTools documentation built on June 8, 2025, 12:34 p.m.