A general weighted two-way dissimilarity coefficient

Choosing dissimilarity/similarity (proximity) measures for mixed data is not always easy. Cower (1971) has suggested a measure which has become popular in practical applications. This paper suggests an extension to his measure for calculating pairwise dissimilarities for individuals (objects) which also simultaneously produces a set for the variables. The definition of the dissimilarities incorporates the automatic weighting of individuals and variables. The dissimilarities can be used for multidimensional scaling or other statistical techniques that use proximities for both the individuals and variables, with the weights providing information on the relative contribution of each individual and variable in the analysis. The new method is tested by a simulation exercise and then used successfully on three empirical data sets.