Which statistical method identifies clusters of related items (factors) in a data set?

• A. Factor Analysis
• B. Regression
• C. Cluster Analysis
• D. ANOVA

Answer: (A)

Identifying latent constructs that explain patterns of correlations among many observed variables. Factor analysis looks at how items co-vary and groups those items into underlying factors based on shared variance, revealing which items load onto the same latent construct. This helps you understand that several related items are tapping into a common underlying idea, rather than treating each item as unrelated. It’s different from clustering observations or cases because the goal is to uncover drivers of correlation among variables, not to form groups of data points. Regression predicts an outcome from predictors, ANOVA compares means across predefined groups, and cluster analysis groups items or cases by similarity without necessarily identifying hidden factors driving the relationships.