My first invitations
Coming back from the USA I have been very active in two different fields: I wrote, often together with other people, papers in national and international journals about SEM issues and applications and I wrote together with Irmtraud and her colleagues about text analysis. This lead to several invitations and new activities.
My first conference abroad
In 1976 I was for the first time invited for a Methodology Conference which took place in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. At that time Slovenia was still a part of Communist Yugoslavia. Honestly speaking I don´t remember much of the conference itself except that we were at some point in time invited for a lunch outside Ljubljana, in a town called Skofja Loka. When we arrived there we saw people preparing the lunch. Large tables were placed under trees. At the side they were roasting pigs on long spits.
My first conference abroad
In 1976 I was for the first time invited for a Methodology Conference which took place in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. At that time Slovenia was still a part of Communist Yugoslavia. Honestly speaking I don´t remember much of the conference itself except that we were at some point in time invited for a lunch outside Ljubljana, in a town called Skofja Loka. When we arrived there we saw people preparing the lunch. Large tables were placed under trees. At the side they were roasting pigs on long spits.
But before we could go for the lunch we first had to listen to a speech of the mayor of the town. Because he could not speak English his speech was translated. This meant that the speech became twice as large as normal. Before the speech started I met my teacher in SEM of the Essex summer school, Pat Doreian, and we went together in the hall and were sitting next to each other during the speech. The mayor was explaining to us the quality of the communist system and the success of this system in Skofia Loka. After half an hour we started to become impatient because we could imagine what he wanted to tell and all was rather boring. However the speech went on and on. After an hour we decided that we had enough. So we decided to have a beer outside before the meal. We went to a terrace from where we could observe the hall of the conference. When we had finished our first glass of beer, the mayor was still speaking and we asked for other beers. I don´t know how long this went on, but what I know is that we both were quite drunk when the participants of the conference finally came out of the building and the lunch was served. The other people came to the lunch completely exhausted by listening at the speech in two languages but Pat and I were only joking and laughing during the unusual lunch. This was the first and only conference that I became drunk and laughed so much. I suppose I also presented a paper but I don´t remember about what.
Teacher in the Essex Summer School
Shortly after the conference, I was invited by the director of the Essex Summer School to take over the course in SEM that Pat Doreian so far had given. He had obtained a position in mathematical sociology at the University of Pittsburg. I suppose that I convinced Pat during our drinking session that I would be the best candidate to take over his job at the Summer school. Whatever the reason has been for this invitation I am still very grateful for it because I enjoyed teaching in Essex a lot and have taught there during 13 years. The teachers stayed in the 13th floor of one of the towers with a beautiful view on the campus or the riverside.
There I met a lot of students from all over Europe and outside Europe and tried to convince them of the attractive approach to social science research which was possible, using the model developed by Karl Jörekog and the program LISREL. With many of my students of the Essex Summer School I have cooperated in research as we will see later.
Shortly after the conference, I was invited by the director of the Essex Summer School to take over the course in SEM that Pat Doreian so far had given. He had obtained a position in mathematical sociology at the University of Pittsburg. I suppose that I convinced Pat during our drinking session that I would be the best candidate to take over his job at the Summer school. Whatever the reason has been for this invitation I am still very grateful for it because I enjoyed teaching in Essex a lot and have taught there during 13 years. The teachers stayed in the 13th floor of one of the towers with a beautiful view on the campus or the riverside.
There I met a lot of students from all over Europe and outside Europe and tried to convince them of the attractive approach to social science research which was possible, using the model developed by Karl Jörekog and the program LISREL. With many of my students of the Essex Summer School I have cooperated in research as we will see later.
The Dutch association for statistics (VVS)
I also was invited to join the board of the social science section. The board of this section was formed by a psychometrician Don Mellenbergh , two political scientists Kees Niemöller and Wijbrandt van Schuur and a me (a social science statistician). I suggested, besides the regular meetings, to start an informal journal on social statistics. As it mostly happens, the person who makes a proposal also has to do the work. So I became the editor of the Methods and Data Newsletter (MDN). The journal clearly functioned well, I received enough papers for the journal. This activity also contributed to a considerable increase in the membership of the social science section of the VVS. Within a short time the number of members of the section was doubled and became one of the more successful sections of the VVS. What was more important was that in this way the social science statisticians in the Netherlands got to know who did what in the different universities. That turned out to be very useful later.
The board of the VVS also saw the success of our activities and thought that it was due to the journal, therefore 5 years later I was invited to become a member of the board of the VVS and to join the editorial board of a new journal “Kwantitatieve Methoden”, a similar journal as MDN but now for all sections. This was certainly an honor for me but in contrast with the meetings of the board of the social science section, in these meetings people were only talking about management and not about any substantive issues. I did not management because I still wanted to spend my time on research, therefore already after a year I decided to resign from the board of the VVS.
I also was invited to join the board of the social science section. The board of this section was formed by a psychometrician Don Mellenbergh , two political scientists Kees Niemöller and Wijbrandt van Schuur and a me (a social science statistician). I suggested, besides the regular meetings, to start an informal journal on social statistics. As it mostly happens, the person who makes a proposal also has to do the work. So I became the editor of the Methods and Data Newsletter (MDN). The journal clearly functioned well, I received enough papers for the journal. This activity also contributed to a considerable increase in the membership of the social science section of the VVS. Within a short time the number of members of the section was doubled and became one of the more successful sections of the VVS. What was more important was that in this way the social science statisticians in the Netherlands got to know who did what in the different universities. That turned out to be very useful later.
The board of the VVS also saw the success of our activities and thought that it was due to the journal, therefore 5 years later I was invited to become a member of the board of the VVS and to join the editorial board of a new journal “Kwantitatieve Methoden”, a similar journal as MDN but now for all sections. This was certainly an honor for me but in contrast with the meetings of the board of the social science section, in these meetings people were only talking about management and not about any substantive issues. I did not management because I still wanted to spend my time on research, therefore already after a year I decided to resign from the board of the VVS.
Invitation for a meeting to discuss LISREL and PLS in Cartigny
Next to the LISREL program of Karl Jöreskog for SEM models also a second program had appeared, called PLS. This program was developed by the predecessor of Karl Jöreskog in Uppsala Herman Wold. The difference between the two programs was the treatment of the latent variables parts of the models. I don´t want to go in the details of the differences between the two approaches that would lead to far. Both programs still exist and the controversy between the two continues as well. The initiative for the conference came from Herman Wold and it seemed that Karl Jöreskog could not refuse out of politeness toward his earlier teacher in statistics. Both invited several researchers who were active in their field. Several members of the SEM family I mentioned before were there. I was very honored by the invitation. Of Herman Wold I knew only the justified critic he made on models with reciprocal causal relationships. It had been a fierce battle in econometrics which Wold lost although he was right. So I expected here the same. That happened indeed although it often seems that Herman Wold was sleeping but then suddenly he fiercely attacked critics of his work.
Next to the LISREL program of Karl Jöreskog for SEM models also a second program had appeared, called PLS. This program was developed by the predecessor of Karl Jöreskog in Uppsala Herman Wold. The difference between the two programs was the treatment of the latent variables parts of the models. I don´t want to go in the details of the differences between the two approaches that would lead to far. Both programs still exist and the controversy between the two continues as well. The initiative for the conference came from Herman Wold and it seemed that Karl Jöreskog could not refuse out of politeness toward his earlier teacher in statistics. Both invited several researchers who were active in their field. Several members of the SEM family I mentioned before were there. I was very honored by the invitation. Of Herman Wold I knew only the justified critic he made on models with reciprocal causal relationships. It had been a fierce battle in econometrics which Wold lost although he was right. So I expected here the same. That happened indeed although it often seems that Herman Wold was sleeping but then suddenly he fiercely attacked critics of his work.
But I will never forget the start of the meeting. Herman Wold opened the meeting and said that unfortunately the famous Swedish mathematical statistician Harald Cramér was not able to come but he had provided an opening speech which Herman Wold would present. Then followed a polite remark about the important approach in statistics developed by two Swedish statisticians. But then he continued mainly with praise for Herman Wold.
Later we were told that Cramér was neither able to come nor to make such a letter because he was too ill to do so. That meant that Herman Wold himself had made this speech.
At the camp of the LISREL adepts we really thought that this went a bit too far. So the division was created from the start and where the LISREL people discussed different adjustments and problems of the approach, the other side could not accept any criticism of their approach. It was one of the most remarkable events I ever have attended.
Later we were told that Cramér was neither able to come nor to make such a letter because he was too ill to do so. That meant that Herman Wold himself had made this speech.
At the camp of the LISREL adepts we really thought that this went a bit too far. So the division was created from the start and where the LISREL people discussed different adjustments and problems of the approach, the other side could not accept any criticism of their approach. It was one of the most remarkable events I ever have attended.