Bootstrapping and correspondence analysis in archaeology

A method which allows a certain amount of “significance” to be attached to the spread of points on a Correspondence Analysis display is described, and the results of a simulation study are presented which gives important information concerning the properties of this method.

Abstract

Correspondence Analysis is a statistical technique for producing graphical displays of frequency data in the form of contingency tables. It has recently become popular in quantitative archaeology, particularly with the advent of fast, easy-to-use PC programs to perform it. This paper describes a method which allows a certain amount of "significance" to be attached to the spread of points on a Correspondence Analysis display, and in addition presents the results of a simulation study which gives important information concerning the properties of this method.