Li Cai | |
|---|---|
| 蔡力 | |
| Born | c. 1980 (age 43–44) |
| Alma mater | Nanjing University Ohio State University University of North Carolina |
| Known for | Invention and proof of correctness of a solution for latent variable models that were considered intractable |
| Awards | AERA Outstanding Quantitative Dissertation (2009) NCME Brenda H. Loyd Award (2009) APA Anne Anastasi Distinguished Early Career Award (2011) SMEP Cattell Award (2012) NSF PECASE (2012) FABBS Early Career Impact Award (2015) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Statistics Psychometrics |
| Institutions | UCLA CRESST |
| Thesis | A Metropolis–Hastings Robbins–Monro algorithm for maximum likelihood nonlinear latent structure analysis with a comprehensive measurement model |
| Doctoral advisor | David Thissen |
Li Cai (Chinese: 蔡力; pinyin: Cài Lì; born c. 1980) is a statistician and quantitative psychologist. He is a professor of Advanced Quantitative Methodology at the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies with a joint appointment in the quantitative area of the UCLA Department of Psychology. He is also Director of the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing, Managing Partner at Vector Psychometric Group.
He invented the Metropolis–Hastings Robbins–Monro algorithm for inference in high-dimensional latent variable models that had been intractable with existing solutions. The algorithm was recognized as a mathematically rigorous breakthrough in the "curse of dimensionality" and garnered numerous top-tier publications and national awards.[1][2][3][4][5]