MODULE 4: MEASURES OF VARIABILITY

Variability
- Provides a quantitative measure of the differences between scores in a distribution and
describes the degree to which the scores are spread out or clustered together.
- The purpose for measuring variability is to obtain an objective measure of how the scores are
spread out in a distribution. In general, a good measures of variability serves two purpose:

1. Variability describes the distribution specifically it tells whether the scores are clustered close
together or are spread out over a large distance.
2. Variability measures how well an individual score (or group of scores) represents the entire
distribution.

3 Different Measures of Variability

1. The Range
- The distance covered by the scores in a distribution, from the smallest score to the largest
score.
Range = URL for Xmax – LRL for Xmin
- Defining the range as the number of measurement categories also works for discrete variables
that are measured with numerical scores.
Xmax - Xmin +1
- A commonly used alternative definition of the range simply measures the distance between the
largest score (Xmax) and the smallest score (Xmin), without any reference to real limits
Range= Xmax – Xmin

2. Standard Deviation and Variance for a population

- The standard deviation is the most commonly used and the most important measure of
variability. Standard deviation uses the mean of the distribution as a reference point and
measure variability by considering the distance between each score and the mean.
- The standard deviation provides a measure of the standard, or average from distance the
mean, and describes whether the scores are clustered closely around the mean or are widely
scattered.
- Deviation is the distance from the mean:
Deviation score = X - μ
X = Score
μ = Mean

- Example: for a distribution of scores with μ = 50, if your score is X = 53, then your deviation
score is:
 X – μ = 53 - 50 = 3

12
Example: number of scores is 4. These scores add up to Σx = 12, so the mean is μ = =3
4

X X–μ

8 5

1 -2

3 0

0 -3

σ = (X – μ)

- The average of deviation scores does not work as a measure of variability because it is always
zero. Clearly, this problem results from the positive and negative values canceling each other
out. The solution is to get rid of the signs (+ and -). The standard procedure for accomplishing
this is to square each deviation score. Using the squared values, you then compute the mean
squared deviation, which is called population variance.

Population Variance
- Equals the mean squared deviation. Variance is the average squared distance from the mean

Standard Deviation
- The square root of the variance and provides a measure of the standard, or average, distance
from the mean.

SS (Sum of Squares)
- The sum of the squared deviation scores.
- There are 2 formula to compute ss: The definitional formula + computational formula.

1. Definitional Formula
SS = Σ (X – μ)2
 2. Computational Formula

3. Stand deviation and variance for a sample

- The sum of squared deviation for a sample:
Definitional Formula: SS = Σ (X – μ)2
(Σ x) 2
Computational Formula: SS = Σx2 -
n
- Calculating the sum of the squared deviations, ss, is the same for a sample as it is for a
population. The changes in nation involve using M for the sample mean instead of μ, and using
n (instead of N) for the number of scores.
- To correct for the bias in sample variability, it is necessary to make an adjustment in the
formulas for sample variance and standard deviation, sample variance (identified by the
symbol s2) is defined as:
(SS)2
Sample variance = s2 -
n−1

- Sample standard deviation (identified by the symbol s) is simply the square root of the variance

SS
Sample Standard Deviation = s = √ s 2 =
√ n−1
- For a sample of n scores, the degrees of freedom, or df, for the sample variance are defined
as df= n-1. The degrees of freedom determine the number of scores in the sample that are
independent and free to vary.
- A sample statistic is unbiased if the average value of the statistic is equal to the population
parameter. (The average value of the statistics is obtained from all the possible samples for a
specific sample size, n.)
- A sample statistic is biased if the average value of the statistic either underestimates or
overestimates the corresponding population parameter.
Standard Deviation and Descriptive Statistics
- Standard deviation is primarily a descriptive measure; it describes how variable, or how spread
out, the scores are in a distribution. Behavioral scientist must deal with the variability that
comes from studying people and animals.
- Adding a constant value to every score in a distribution does not change the standard
deviation. Multiplying every score by a constant, however, causes the standard deviation to be
multiplied by the same constant.
Variance and Inferential Statistics
- Variability plays an important role in the inferential process because the variability in the data
influences how easy it is to see patterns. In general, low variability means that existing patterns
can be seen clearly, whereas high variability tends to obscure any patterns that might exists.
- In the context of inferential statistics, the variance the exists in a set of sample data is often
classified as error variance. This term is used to indicate that the sample variance represents
unexplained and uncontrolled differences between score. As the error variance increases, it
becomes more difficult to see any systematic differences or patterns that might exist in the
data. In general, variance makes it difficult to get a clear signal for the data. High variance can
make it difficult or impossible to see a mean difference between two sets of scores, or to see
any other meaningful patterns in the results from a research study.