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Check the level of measurement make sure it is
appropriate for envisaged analysis.
2. Ordinal
3. Interval
4. Ratio
Male
Yes
No
Female
Very satisfied
Somewhat satisfied
Neutral
Somewhat dissatisfied
Very dissatisfied
Degree or higher
Level 3 or equivalent
Level 2 or equivalent
Level 1 or equivalent
No qualifications
Descriptive statistics
Descriptive statistics describe what the data is or what the
data shows.
Descriptive statistics are different from inferential statistics.
Inferential statistics are used to infer conclusions from the
data and make generalisations to the populations.
Descriptive statistics conducting analysis on one variable at
a time or univariate analysis.
Measures of distribution
Frequency tables
(1/3)
Frequency table
(2/3)
Example
Age range
Number
Percentage
Less than 20
150
19.9
20 49
250
33.1
50 64
180
23.8
65 80
100
13.3
Over 80
75
9.9
755
100.0
Total
Frequency table
(3/3)
Percentage
Valid
Percentage
Cumulative
Percentage
Less than 20
150
19.3
19.9
19.9
20 49
250
32.2
33.1
53.0
50 64
180
23.2
23.8
76.8
65 80
100
12.9
13.3
90.1
Over 80
75
9.8
9.9
100.0
Total
755
97.4
100.0
100.0
Missing (not
20
2.6
775
100.0
Age range
recorded)
Total
220
280
320
280
180
350
280
330
220
(Contd)
2 Mode (contd)
Bi-modal: two most frequently occurring values in a
distribution (two pronounced views or patterns of response).
Multi-modal: where there are more than two modes in a
distribution (potentially several pronounced views or patterns
of response).
(Contd)
3 Median
Median is the midpoint in a distribution, when arranged in
ascending or descending order.
180
220
280
320
380
280
Where there is an even number of observations the median
will be the average of the two middle values.
180
220
280
300
290
320
380
Appropriate measure
Level of measurement
Nominal
Mode
Ordinal
Interval/Ratio
Measures of dispersion
Measures of dispersion: statistical measures that summarise
the amount of spread or variation in the distribution of values
in a variable.
So, how values are spread within a distribution.
There are a number of different measures (applicable to
interval or ratio data):
Range
Standard deviation
Variance
Measures of dispersion
Type
Description
Range
Variance
Standard deviation
Range
Range is the difference between the highest and lowest value
in the distribution of values.
Example:
Weekly income of 10 people:
180 220 280 320 280 180 310 280 330 220
Very
unuseful
Useful
Unuseful
Very
unuseful
Useful
Very
useful
Very
useful
Useful
Unuseful
Q3
75th
percentile
IQR
Min
Max
Q2
Median
50th
Percentile
Ran
ge
Variance
Where the mean is a measure of the centre of a group of
numbers, the variance is the measure of the spread.
It involves measuring the distance between each of the
values and the mean.
To calculate the variance :
1. calculate the mean
2.
3.
Variance
N 1
Standard deviation
Standard deviation = The square root of the variance.
X X
N 1
Univariate analysis
Nominal
Ordinal
Interval/Ratio
Further Reading
Creswell, John W (1994), Research design: Qualitative and Quantitative
Approaches. Sage Publication, London, Page 116-171
Holt, G. (1998). A guide to successful dissertation study for students of the
built environment, Second edition. Wolverhampton: Built Environment
Research Unit. ISBN: 1-902010-01-9, page 100-118
Naoum, S.G. (2007) Dissertation Research and Writing for Construction
Students, 2nd Edition. Oxford: Butterworth Heinemann. ISBN: 0 7506 2988
6, page 91-131