Unit 2: DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS

Introduction
Data collected can be meaningful if some statistical tools will be used. Some
ways of doing it is through measures of central tendency, and measures of
dispersion/variation. This module will revolve discussing all about the mentioned
measures.

Learning Outcomes
At the end of this module the student will be able to:
1. Solve for measures of central tendency
2. Solve for measures of dispersion/variation

Lesson 1: Measures of Central Tendency

Measures of Central Tendency-The central tendency of the dataset can be found
out using the three important measures namely mean, median and mode. It can be
presented in grouped or ungrouped.

Mean
The mean represents the average value of the dataset. It can be calculated as
the sum of all the values in the dataset divided by the number of values. Consider the
table below:
To compute for the mean for ungrouped data:
1. Add all the figures and divide by the number of items or

=89+50+51+90+41+41+42+45+55+47+77+80+78+60+67+61+73+70+71+75
+83+82+73+74+51/25
=1,626/25
µ=65.04 or 65
Table 1: Hypothetical Amount of Wealth of Top 30 Billionaires in the World
(Figures in Billion Dollars)

89 50 51 90 41
41 42 45 55 47
77 80 78 60 67
61 73 70 71 75
83 82 73 74 51
To compute for the mean for grouped data:

You can decide on how many groups you will divide the data. In the example
below, the data was divided into 5 groups having 10 class interval. It was achieved by
subtracting the highest observation with the lowest observation and dividing it by 5
which is the decided number of groups.

Solving: 90-41 = 49 = 9.8 or 10 (class interval)

5

Table 2: Grouped Data on Hypothetical Amount of Wealth of Top 30 Billionaires in

the World (Figures in Billion Dollars)

Grouped Frequency(f) Midpoint (m) fm

41-50 6 45.5 273

51-60 4 55.5 222

61-70 3 65.5 196.5

71-80 8 75.5 604

81-90 4 85.5 342

Total 25 Σ=1607.5

x̄ =Σfm
n
= 1607.5
25
= 65.5

Median
The median is the dataset’s middle value when it is arranged in the ascending order
or in descending order. When the dataset contains an even number of values, then
the median value of the dataset can be found by taking the mean of the middle two
values.

Arrange the figures in ascending or descending order:

41, 41, 42, 45, 47, 50, 51, 51, 55, 60, 61, 67, 70, 71, 73, 73, 74, 75, 77, 78, 80, 82, 83, 89, 90

The median is 70. In terms there are two middle values, median is computed using the
formula

Median=the (N+1)th item in the data array

2
To compute for the median for grouped data:

Table 3: Hypothetical Amount of Wealth of Top 30 Billionaires in the World

(Figures in Billion Dollars)

Class Frequency (f) Cumulative Frequency (cf)

41-50 6 6

51-60 4 10

61-70 3 13

71-80 8 21

81-90 4 25

Formula: Md=L+ n/2 - F c

fm

Where L= lower limit of the median class (i.e. the class that contains the middle item of the
distribution)
n= the number of observation in the dataset
F= sum of the frequencies up to but not including the median class
fm=frequency of the median class
c=width of the class interval
Solution:
Md=L+ n/2 - F c
fm
= 61 + (12.5 – 10) 10
3
= 61+ (2.5) 10
3
= 61 + 25
3
=61 + 8.33

Md= 69.33 or 69

Mode
The mode represents the most frequent occurring value in the dataset. Occasionally
the dataset may contain multiple modes and sometimes it does not contain any mode
at all.
Consider the example:
41, 41, 42, 45, 47, 50, 51, 51, 55, 60, 61, 67, 70, 71, 73, 73, 74, 75, 77, 78, 80, 82, 83, 89,90
The modes are: 41, 51, and 73

Computing the mode for grouped data:

Table 4

Class Frequency (f)

41-50 6

51-60 4

61-70 3

71-80 8

81-90 4

Formula: Mo= L + d1 c
d1 + d2
Where:
L=lower limit of the modal class (the class with the greatest frequency)
d1=frequency of the modal class minus the frequency of the previous class
d2=frequency of the modal class minus frequency of the following class
c=width of the class interval
Solution:
Mo= L + d1 c
d1 + d2

=71 + (8-3) 10
(8-3)+(8-4)
=71 + ( 5 ) 10
5+4

=71+ 50
9
=71+5.56
Mo =76.56

Lesson 2: Measures of Dispersion

Dispersion is the variability/spread of the data. The most common measures of
dispersion are (1) the average deviation, (2) the standard deviation, (3) the variance
1. Average Deviation. The average deviation (AD) is also called the mean absolute
deviation (MAD).

Formula for ungrouped data:

AD = Σ /X-µ/ for population
N
 AD = Σ /X- x̄/ for samples
n
Where: the two vertical bars indicate the absolute value or the values omitting
the sign, with the other symbols having the same meaning.

Formula for grouped data:

AD = Σ f/X-µ/ for population
N
AD = Σ f/X- x̄/ for samples
n

2. Standard Deviation is a numeric measure of the distribution of data around the

mean. A smaller standard deviation denotes that greatest of the data is close to
the mean. On the other hand, a greater standard deviation means that the data is
more spread out over the sample space.
For Ungrouped data:
σ = √Σ(X- µ) 2 and s=√Σ(X- µ) 2
N n-1
For Grouped data:
σ = √Σf(X- µ) 2 and s=√Σf(X- µ) 2
N n-1
3. Variance refers to a statistical measurement of the spread between numbers in a
data set. For ungrouped data, the formula are as follows:

2
For population: σ2= Σ(x-µ)2 For sample: s2 = Σ(X- x̄)
N n-1

For grouped data:

For population: σ2 = Σf(x-µ)2 For sample: s2 = Σ(X- x̄)2
N n-1

Solving for AD, SD, and Variance for Ungrouped Data:

Average Deviation:

AD = Σ /X-µ/ = 343 =13.72

N 25
Standard Deviation:

SD = σ = √Σ(X- µ) 2 =√5869 =√234.76 =15.32

N 25

Variance:
 σ2= Σ(x-µ)2 = 5869 =234.76
N 25

Consider the table below:

Table 5

Solving for AD, SD, and Variance for Grouped Data:

AD= Σ f/X-µ/ = 320 =12.8
N 25

SD= σ = √Σf(X- µ) 2 √5200 = √12.8 =3.58

N 25

Var = σ2 = Σf(x-µ)2 =5200 =12.8

N 25

Consider the table below:

Table 6
Suggested Readings

● Broto, A. (2006). Statistics made simple. Philippinines: National

Book Store.
● Downing, Douglas & Jeffrey Clark.(2008). Business Statistics.
Barron’s Educ’l Series, Inc.