Optimal Matching Analysis
Optimal matching analysis measures how dissimilar two categorical sequences are by computing the minimum total cost of editing one sequence into the other through substitution and insertion/deletion operations. Borrowed from computer science and molecular biology and introduced to sociology by Andrew Abbott, it supplies the pairwise distances that underpin sequence analysis of careers, family histories, and other life-course trajectories.
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Sources
- Abbott, A., & Tsay, A. (2000). Sequence analysis and optimal matching methods in sociology: review and prospect. Sociological Methods & Research, 29(1), 3–33. DOI: 10.1177/0049124100029001001 ↗
- Studer, M., & Ritschard, G. (2016). What matters in differences between life trajectories: a comparative review of sequence dissimilarity measures. Journal of the Royal Statistical Society: Series A, 179(2), 481–511. DOI: 10.1111/rssa.12125 ↗
How to cite this page
ScholarGate. (2026, June 22). Optimal Matching Analysis of Sequences. ScholarGate. https://scholargate.app/en/sociology/optimal-matching-analysis
Which method?
Set this method beside its closest kin and read them side by side — the library lays the books on the table; the choice is yours.
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