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The treatment of categorical information in Physical Anthropology

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International Journal of Anthropology

Abstract

Applications of multivariate analysis in physical anthropology have been mainly concerned with quantitative variables. We suggest that methods developed by psychometricians for the analysis of categorical (qualitative), possibly ordered, variables may be adopted with profit by anthropologists. PRINCIPALS, a form of principal components analysis using categorical variables, is briefly discussed and illustrated with an analysis of data on 164 skulls, each described by eleven qualitative variables (Age-group, Sex, Foramen Pharyngeum and left and right Frontal Grooves, Maxillary Torus, Foramen Supraorbitale and Foramen Zygomatico-orbitale). Similar generalisations exist for all other forms of quantitative multivariate analysis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. of Data Theory, University of Leiden, Postbox 9555, 2300, RB Leiden, The Netherlands

    J. C. Gower & J. J. Meulman

Authors
  1. J. C. Gower
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  2. J. J. Meulman
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Gower, J.C., Meulman, J.J. The treatment of categorical information in Physical Anthropology. Int. J. Anthropol. 8, 43–51 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02447643

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02447643

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