The Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) in Behavioural Analysis

Spectral analysis is an important tool for examining time-series data and can be particularly powerful in detecting periodicity in animal behaviour patterns. Because of its simplicity and the speed of current computing algorithms, the discrete Fourier transform is most often used in spectral analysi...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of theoretical biology 1994-02, Vol.166 (4), p.419-429
Main Authors: Forrest, T.G., Suter, Robert B.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal ethology
Biological and medical sciences
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
General aspects
Invertebrates
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Spectral analysis is an important tool for examining time-series data and can be particularly powerful in detecting periodicity in animal behaviour patterns. Because of its simplicity and the speed of current computing algorithms, the discrete Fourier transform is most often used in spectral analysis. An understanding of several important aspects of discrete Fourier transform analysis (its application to degenerate or transformed data, aliasing, truncation, and statistical inference) is central to the appropriate use of this form of spectral analysis. These aspects are discussed and evaluated in the context of the analysis of temporal behaviour patterns of animals. The variety of published techniques for the statistical analysis of discrete Fourier transform spectra is particularly vexing for behavioural scientists interested in the possible significance of individual components (peaks): a conservative and simple χ 2 test is proposed as a solution.
ISSN:0022-5193
1095-8541
DOI:10.1006/jtbi.1994.1037