Historical Inferences from Guttman Scales: The Return of Age-Area Magic?

Autor:	Theodore D. Graves, Michael J. Kobrin, Nancy B. Graves
Rok vydání:	1969
Předmět:	Archeology education.field_of_study media_common.quotation_subject Trait based Population Guttman scale Magic (paranormal) Geographic distribution Guttman scaling Anthropology education Psychology Social psychology media_common Cognitive psychology
Zdroj:	Current Anthropology. 10:317-338
ISSN:	1537-5382 0011-3204
DOI:	10.1086/201020
Popis:	Inferences about historical sequences are frequently drawn from Guttman scales, on the supposition that each item in the scale serves as a "functional prerequisite" for successive items. The validity of such inferences is here called into question on both theoretical and empirical grounds. Logically, such inferences are subject to the same limitations as inferences about the age of a trait based on its geographic distribution (the discredited "age-area" hypothesis). This is true even if specific scale items are seen as indices of broader evolutionary "stages," or if the unidimensional nature of the Guttman scale serves only as the basis for inferring some underlying unilinear evolutionary process. To test these notions empirically, 40 Mexican communities, varying widely in location, population, economic base, and social attributes, were investigated. Within each, data were gathered on the presence or absence of 24 traits typically selected for Guttman scaling, together with their actual historical sequenc...
Databáze:	OpenAIRE
Externí odkaz:	https://explore.openaire.eu/search/publication?articleId=doi_________::02d8189307d38b5e0b83175d5f7a43f6 https://doi.org/10.1086/201020 Zobrazit plný text záznamu