Characteristic

Definition

A characteristic is a distinguishing feature of an object.

Generic relations

• Feature

Subordinate concepts

A

Subordinate concepts are:

• Physical characteristics (e.g. mechanical, electrical, chemical or biological characteristics);
• Sensory characteristics (e.g. related to smell, touch, taste, sight, hearing);
• Behavioural characteristics (e.g. courtesy, honesty, veracity);
• Temporal characteristics (e.g. punctuality, reliability, availability, continuity);
• Ergonomic characteristics (e.g. physiological characteristic, or related to human safety);
• Functional characteristics (e.g. maximum speed of an car).

B

Subordinate concepts are:

• Qualitative characteristics (e.g., clarity)
• Quantitative characteristics (e.g., length)

C

Subordinate concepts are:

• Inherent characteristics (e.g., accuracy)
• Assigned characteristic (e.g., price)

Associative relations

Associative relations are:

• A characteristic is always associated with an object.
• A combination of a characteristic and an object is a focus area. For example the accuracy (characteristic) of data (object).

See also

Property