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Abstract

Language is the most widely proposed criterion for operational culture- bearing units used in cross-cultural surveys. The double boundary method eliminates the need to define exact language boundaries. The solution pro poses : (1) choosing a particular local community, at a particular point in time, as the sampling unit; (2) checking its linguistic affiliation in Voegelin and Voegelin's "Languages of the World" (keeping in mind that if two units belong to the same language group, one must be discarded from the sample unless there is clear evidence that they are obviously mutually unintelligible); and (3) checking each focal unit for linguistic heterogeneity. When time focus follows colonial administration, Naroll proposes possible measures to control for colonial influence.

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References

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The Double Language Boundary in Cross-Cultural Surveys

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