Standard Error of Estimate (SEE)
Definition
The statistical uncertainty around a regression-based stature estimate, representing the range within which approximately 68 per cent of individuals in the derivation sample fall. The 95 per cent prediction interval is approximately ± 2 SEE. Must be reported alongside every stature point estimate in a forensic report.
- Applies to
- Regression-based stature estimation from skeletal remains
- 68% range
- Approximately one SEE either side of the estimate
- 95% interval
- Approximately plus or minus 2 SEE
- Reporting rule
- Must accompany every stature point estimate
Common questions
Why can't a forensic anthropologist report stature as a single exact number?+
A regression equation derived from a reference population carries inherent scatter around its predicted line. Reporting only the point estimate implies a precision the method does not have, so the SEE-based range communicates the real uncertainty to the court.
Does the SEE change depending on which bone or equation is used?+
Yes. Different long bones and different population-specific regression formulae carry different SEE values, generally reflecting how strongly that bone's length correlates with stature in the reference sample the equation was built from.
Related terms
- Age-Related Stature Loss
- The decrease in living stature with age due to intervertebral disc compression and vertebral remodeling, approximately 0.10-0.12 cm per year after age...
- Auerbach-Ruff 2004 Method
- A body-mass estimation method using bi-iliac (maximum pelvic) breadth combined with stature, providing an alternative proxy when the femoral head is absent...
- Crural Index
- The ratio of tibia length to femur length, multiplied by 100. Varies systematically between populations: higher (relatively longer tibia) in tropical populations,...
- Femoral Head Diameter (FHD)
- The superoinferior diameter of the femoral head, measured at the widest point perpendicular to the neck axis. The primary skeletal proxy for...
- Maximum (Anatomical) Femur Length
- The bone length measured from the most superior point of the femoral head to the most inferior point of the femoral condyles...
- Mukherjee-Bandyopadhyay Equations
- Population-specific stature regression equations for Bengali Indian males and females, published in 1955 from cadaveric material at Calcutta Medical College. The male...
- Ruff-Scott-Walker 1997 Method
- The principal body-mass estimation method from skeletal remains, using femoral head diameter (and, in the Auerbach-Ruff 2004 extension, bi-iliac breadth combined with...
- Stature Regression Equation
- A mathematical equation derived from a reference skeletal sample with known stature and long-bone measurements, used to estimate living stature from measured...
- Trotter-Gleser Equations
- The foundational US stature regression equations published by Mildred Trotter and Goldine Gleser in 1952 (from WWII casualties) and revised in 1958...