Measuring reliability and consistency in contingency tables

Abstract

The association between two categorical variables is very often assessed by making a cross-tabulation and calculating the x2 statistic for that table. However there are many other related parameters which can be used to assess subtle patterns in the table. In this article we will discuss parameters which can be fruitfully used in situations such as the test-retest method for the reliability of questions in a pilot questionnaire ; the measurement of the change of people’s attitude with time ; the comparison of two medical diagnoses of a given patient ; the prediction of heart disease status using an independent risk scale.