Definition
Aggregating data is the process of combining several measurements.
Introduction
Aggregated data are commonly used in presenting descriptive summary statistics. Beyond summary statistics, multiple measurements or observations of the same individual may be aggregated to reduce the number of variables or to generate a composite score that may more accurately represent the underlying construct of interest. In addition, when data are clustered, data from different individuals may be aggregated to allow for group comparisons.
Composite Measures
When multiple measures of the same underlying construct are available, data may be aggregated into a single, composite measure to reduce the number of variables in analyses or to achieve a more consistent measure of the underlying construct. This may be particularly important in evaluating attributes such as attitudes, behavior, and personality, where single items or observations are typically unrepresentative and poor measures of typical...
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Puka, K. (2018). Aggregating Data. In: Zeigler-Hill, V., Shackelford, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_1278-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_1278-1
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