Longitudinal modeling of age-dependent latent traits with generalized additive latent and mixed models

We present generalized additive latent and mixed models (GALAMMs) for analysis of clustered data with latent and observed variables depending smoothly on observed variables. A profile likelihood algorithm is proposed, and we derive asymptotic standard errors of both smooth and parametric terms. The work was motivated by applications in cognitive neuroscience, and we show how GALAMMs can successfully model the complex lifespan trajectory of latent episodic memory, along with a discrepant trajectory of working memory, as well as the effect of latent socioeconomic status on hippocampal development. Simulation experiments suggest that model estimates are accurate even with moderate sample sizes.