Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Longitudinal psychological research often centers on key developmental transitions, where patterns of change may differ across stages. Piecewise modeling is well suited to capturing these stage-specific changes. This tutorial introduces three piecewise methods in longitudinal psychological research: piecewise multilevel modeling (MLM), piecewise latent class growth modeling (LCGM), and latent transition analysis (LTA). Drawing on a six-wave longitudinal study of national identity development, we show how each method can be implemented in R and highlight the types of research questions each is designed to address, from estimating average developmental trajectories to identifying heterogeneous trajectory patterns and examining transitions between latent developmental states.
Source: Frontiers in Psychology
Authors: Shuncheng He, Wooyeol Lee
Institution: Chungbuk National University
Language: English
Subfield: Statistics and Probability
Field: Mathematics
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,801
OpenAlex ID: W7223169195