Weighting

The process of weighting involves emphasizing the contribution of some aspects of a phenomenon (or of a set of data) to a final effect or result — giving them 'more weight' in the analysis. That is, rather than each variable in the data contributing equally to the final result, some data are adjusted to contribute more than others. It is analogous to the practice of adding extra weight to one side of a pair of scales to favour a buyer or seller.