PROC FACTOR is run with ROTATE=VARIMAX. What is the purpose of Varimax rotation?
Select an answer to reveal the explanation.
Short Explanation
Here's the deal — you want Varimax because it’s an orthogonal rotation that pushes each loading toward either 0 or 1, making it clearer which variables load on which factors. That gives you simpler interpretation, while maximizing total variance explained by the first factor is just what unrotated PCA does.
Full Explanation
Varimax is an orthogonal rotation that maximizes variance of squared loadings, pushing each loading toward either 0 or 1, making it clearer which variables load on which factors (simple structure). The first-factor variance option describes unrotated PCA. The correlated-factors option describes oblique rotations like PROMAX. The 80% variance option describes factor-count selection, not rotation.