Analysing aggregated social data using variogram methods

Abstract

One factor should be considered in analyzing sample survey or other data is population structure – how the units of observations are arranged in the population. It has been recognize that the population is usually complex with different relationship in different subgroups of the population (Skinner, Holt, & Smith, 1989). This situation implies that it is hard to accept the classical assumptions of independence and identical distribution (IID), that many standard statistical methods are based on. Therefore classical Statistical Method – which usually assume the observations are IID – may be biased or inefficient.