Target Rotation and Normative Policy Analysis in Urban Ecology

Abstract

Factor analytic methodology in geography and planning has been limited to system description. The conventional approach of searching for an underlying vector basis is germane for exploratory type research, but it is not directly applicable for normative purposes. Target rotation provides an analytical matrix-comparison methodology particularly useful in extending the utility of urban system findings from descriptive ecological studies to normative ones. An empirical example of this approach is provided, based upon 1970 census data of the Detroit SMSA. An empirical factor-loading matrix is presented, a target matrix of desirable performance standards is hypothesized, and the observed loadings are rotated upon the target loadings. Observed system performance is then directly compared with desired performance, indicating the direction and magnitude of convergence/divergence. Finally, policy implications of these empirical findings are suggested.