Files
Abstract
Three multivariate indices, based on the findings of previous studies, and a simple income based index of economic well-being were computed and compared for Virginia counties and cities. These four indices were found to be highly correlated--leading to the conclusion that multivariate techniques need to be oriented to considering variables relating to specific elements of growth and development and not to incorporating large masses of intercorrelated data. For general measurement purposes, a simple income-based measure of economic well-being is a more efficient and just as valid measure as the more complex multivariate indices.