Re: Comparing two variation coefficients

Reef Fish <Large_Nassau_Grouper@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Michael.Lacy.junk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:
Alfred <fredo@xxxxxxxx> wrote:
Dear All,

What test (possibly non -parametric) can be used to test
the differences between two variation coefficient (std dev / mean) ?

Thanks

Fredo

Here's a comprehensive source on your problem and related
ones.

Donnelly SM, Kramer A 1999. Testing for multiple species in fossil
samples: An evaluation and comparison of tests for equal relative
variation. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 108 (4): 507-529

I have to admit that this is the FIRST time that I have heard of
testing the equality two Coefficients of Variations, in parametric
or non-parametric statistics books.

Perhaps there are applications for which the test is appropriate for
a problem at hand, but I can't think of any at this moment.

Perhaps it would be more interesting and instructive for someone to
give a REASON for that specific test of difference of "coefficients of
variation" (a well-defined statistical term), without just citing some
article in a paper in a non statistical journal such as that of
Anthropology.

Actually, there is quite a bit of statistical material in the AJPA,
since physical (bio-) anthropologists are quite a different species
than cultural anthropologists. Of course, it is applied statistical
work. The article I mentioned is useful because it reviews
a lot of work from more "high-powered" statistical
journals, which I thought would present the material in a way that
could be useful to the OP. FWIW, the typical application of interest
among physical anthropologists is to compare the amount of variation
in some metric character, e.g. breadth of a particular molar,
between a sample from a known single-species reference population,
and an unknown fossil sample from a possibly multispecies collection.
(Excess variation in the unknown sample can suggest multispecies
composition of the unknown sample, a matter of some interest among
paleontologists and bio-anthropologists.)

--
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-==-=-=-=
Mike Lacy, Ft Collins CO 80523
Clean out the 'junk' to email me.
.

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