On the assumption of equality of variance-covariance matrices in the sex and racial diagnosis of human skulls

✍ Scribed by H. T. Uytterschaut; F. W. Wilmink

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1983
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 836 KB
• Volume: 60
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0002-9483
• DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.1330600307

✦ Synopsis

Many papers have been devoted to the assumption of equality of variance-covariance matrices (X,) with respect to the use of discriminant analysis. Most of them concentrate on the "effect" of inequality on the results, in particular on discriminant functions. In the present paper, the assumption of equality of covariances itself was investigated for measures on human skulls. Data for both sexes were compared, as well as data on several racial groups. A likelihood ratio test was used. It was concluded that the equality of X, between the sexes and among subraces was not questioned, whereas the results warrant some caution as to the equality of C, among the main racial groups.

Many papers have been devoted to the problem of the equality of variance-covariance matrices X , (Throughout this paper S , (g= 1,2, . . .I will indicate the variance-covariance matrix of sample g, and X, the variancecovariance matrix of the population from which sample g was drawn). The discussion on whether the C, are equal for variables from skeletal material started with the application of linear discriminant analysis (DA) to this kind of material. The pooling of