A brief historical background of discriminant analysis is given, with a description of the variety of roles that discriminant analysis can perform. Focus is on the classification role of discriminant analysis and how it can be performed by using Fisher's classification functions or the canonical discriminant functions. A small hypothetical data…

The available methods for analyzing and interpreting data with multivariate analysis of variance are reviewed, and guidelines for their use are presented. Causal models that underlie the various methods are presented to facilitate the use and understanding of the methods. (Author/PN)

The nature and appropriate application of the technique of multivariate analysis are discussed. More specifically, the intent of the paper is to demystify and explain the use of multivariate analysis as well as provide guidelines for selection of the most effective statistics for use in specific situations. For the purpose of this paper, the term…