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This study involved the comparison of 23 different methods of cluster analysis in a four-stage sequential validation design. These stages included derivation, replication, external validation, and cross-validation. Data were obtained from 750 alcohol abusers on a number of socio-behavioral variables. Results demonstrated that the solution given by Ward's method of cluster analysis was particularly powerful in comparison to solutions yielded by other techniques.
Morey et al. (Fri,) studied this question.