A Systematic Review of Factor Mixture Model Applications

Abstract

In this study, a systematic review was conducted on peer-reviewed articles of factor mixture model (FMM) applications. A total of 304 studies were included with 334 applications published from 2003–2022. FMM was mostly used in these studies to detect latent classes and model heterogeneity. Most of the studies were conducted in the U.S. with samples including students, adults, and the general population. The average sample size was 3,562, and the average number of items was 17.34. Measurement tools containing mostly Likert type items and measuring structures in the field of psychology were used in these FMM analyses. Most FMM studies that were reviewed were applied with maximum likelihood estimation methods as implemented in Mplus software. Multiple fit indices were used, the most common of which were AIC, BIC, and entropy. The mean numbers of classes and factors across the 334 applications were 2.96 and 2.17, respectively. Psychological and behavioral disorders, gender, and age variables were mostly the focus of these studies and included use of covariates in these analyses. As a result of this systematic review, the trends in FMM analyses were better understood.