Spatial statistical analysis and geographic information systems

In this paper, we discuss a number of general issues that pertain to the interface between GIS and spatial analysis. In particular, we focus on the various paradigms for spatial data analysis that follow from the existence of this interface. We outline a series of questions that need to be confronted in the analysis of spatial data, and the extent to which a GIS can facilitate their resolution. We also review a number of exploratory and confirmatory techniques that we feel should form the core of a spatial analysis module for a GIS.