Discrete Multivariate Analyses: Theory and Practice

In view of the wide interest in applications of statistical methods for discrete multivariate data and the limited number of texts available, this book is a welcome addition to the literature. With the exception of two-way contingency tables, the literature on qualitative data is too widely scattered for the casual user to find easily. This is due partly to the recent dramatic increase in activity in the field, and partly to some special characteristics of qualitative data. Complex contingency tables admit a variety of models which may be difficult to describe simply. Distribution theory is usually approximate and techniques based on the approximate asymptotic theory lead to a variety of reasonable solutions to the same problem. Estimation is difficult in practice because algorithms with closed solutions do not always exist. As corollary, analyses can be done only with the aid of a computer. This volume presents a systematic treatment of large contingency tables with troublesome irregularities. Results, heretofore widely scattered in the literature, are organized by presenting parametric models, sampling schemes, basic theory, practical examples, advice on computation. The intended audience is both the theoretical and the applied statistician. The book is massive in scope and bulk. The encyclopedic quality of the work is suggested by an outline of chapters, sections, and sub-sections. It requires five-hundred lines!