Functional regions capturing local socioeconomic dynamics are a framework for territorial statistics and policy-making. The usefulness of such statistics and policies depends on the adequateness of the regions used in the analysis. Several authors have adopted the modularity quality function to drive their regionalization methods. This function, originally devised for non-spatial data, has limitations particularly relevant in this context. The paper discusses these limitations and illustrate them using real data for the United States. The results warn against using standard modularity to assess or optimize the quality of a functional delineation, and advocate for available alternatives that consider the spatial nature of functional regionalization.

中文翻译：

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标准模块化不适合空间交互数据的功能区划

捕捉当地社会经济动态的功能区是领土统计和政策制定的框架。此类统计数据和政策的有用性取决于分析中使用的区域的适当性。几位作者采用模块化质量函数来驱动他们的区域化方法。此功能最初是为非空间数据设计的，在这种情况下具有特别相关的局限性。本文讨论了这些限制，并使用美国的真实数据来说明它们。结果警告不要使用标准模块化来评估或优化功能划分的质量，并提倡考虑功能区域化的空间性质的可用替代方案。