Affinity propagation is a message‐passing‐based clustering procedure that has received widespread attention in domains such as biological science, physics, and computer science. However, its implementation in psychology and related areas of social science is comparatively scant. In this paper, we describe the basic principles of affinity propagation, its relationship to other clustering problems, and the types of data for which it can be used for cluster analysis. More importantly, we identify the strengths and weaknesses of affinity propagation as a clustering tool in general and highlight potential opportunities for its use in psychological research. Numerical examples are provided to illustrate the method.

中文翻译：

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亲和力传播：用于心理学研究的基于样本的工具。

亲和力传播是一种基于消息传递的聚类过程，在生物科学，物理学和计算机科学等领域受到广泛关注。但是，在心理学和社会科学相关领域的实施相对较少。在本文中，我们描述了亲和力传播的基本原理，它与其他聚类问题的关系以及可用于聚类分析的数据类型。更重要的是，我们通常将亲和力传播的优缺点确定为一种聚类工具，并强调了将其用于心理研究的潜在机会。数值例子说明了该方法。