4.

2 MEASURE OF VARIATION OR DISPERSION FOR UNGROUPED DATA

Measure of variation is a measure that describes how spread out or

scattered a set of data. It is also known as measures of dispersion or measures of
spread.

• Measures of dispersion are descriptive statistics that describe how similar a

set of scores are to each other

• The more similar the scores are to each other, the lower the measure
of dispersion will be
• The less similar the scores are to each other, the higher the measure
of dispersion will be
• In general, the more spread out a distribution is, the larger the
measure of dispersion will be

Why is it Important?

Let’s take a look at this example.

You want to choose the best brand of paint for your house. You are interested
in how long the paint lasts before it fades and you must repaint. The choices
are narrowed down to 2 different paints. The results are shown in the chart.
Which paint would you choose?

The chart indicates the number of months a paint lasts before fading

Paint A Paint B
10 35
60 45
50 30
30 35
40 40
20 25
210 210

1|Measure of variation Lynn M Remo2020

 Does the Average( Mean) Help?

• Paint A: Mean = 210/6 = 35 months

• Paint B: Mean = 210/6 = 35 months

Both of the paint lasted 35 months before fading. No help in deciding which
to buy.

Consider the Spread or Variation

• Paint A: variance = 50 months

• Paint B: variance = 20 months

• Paint B has a smaller variance which means that it performs more

consistently. Choose paint B.

There are three common measures of variation: The range, the variance, and
the standard deviation.

The Range

The range of a set of data is the difference between the highest and lowest
values in the set.

 Example

The heights in cm of ten students are: 157, 152, 165, 151, 160, 156, 155, 162,
158, 163. Find the range of the data.

Range = 165 - 151 = 14

The Standard Deviation

The Standard Deviation is a measure of how spread out numbers is. It is the
square root of the variance.

2|Measure of variation Lynn M Remo2020

The population standard deviation formula is:

where,
= population standard deviation
= sum of...
= population mean
n = number of scores in sample.

The sample standard deviation formula is:

where,
s = sample standard deviation
= sum of...
= sample mean
n = number of scores in sample.

Example 1

Data given: 5, 7, 2, 6, 2, 8, 4 and 6.. Compute for the standard deviation.

Solution: From data 5, 7, 2, 6, 2, 8, 4 and 6. The population mean is 5.

∑
√

√ √

Note: Try using your calculator in solving for the standard deviation.

3|Measure of variation Lynn M Remo2020

Example 2

There scores in a 50-items exam were recorded as follows: 33, 27, 45, 26, 11, 48,
and 20. Compute for the standard deviation.

The solution here

Mean =

Data Data – mean ( ̅) ̅̅̅

33 33 – 30 = 3
27 27 – 30 = -3
45 45 – 30 = 5
26 26 – 30 = -4
11 11 – 30 = -19
48 48 – 30 = 18
20 20 – 30 = -10
∑ 1044

∑
√ √

EXCEL COMMAND (STANDARD DEVIATION)

1. Encode the data in one column (as shown in the figure below). In a empty
cell, type =stdev or double click stdev in the function shown in the figure

4|Measure of variation Lynn M Remo2020

 2. Highlight the data (as shown below), then write close parenthesis

3. Enter. The standard deviation will appear.

Standard deviation

5|Measure of variation Lynn M Remo2020

 ACTIVITY 7
DESCRIPTIVE MEASURES

WE can do it!
Compute for the Mean, standard deviation (SD) and
Qualitative Description (QD) of each of the statements. The
mean and SD will be based on the data in page 8. The QD is
based on Table 1 on page 7. Statement 1 is done for you.
Answer the questions following the table.

(1-3)refer to students’ PERSONAL CONFIDENCE in learning MEAN SD QD

statistics

1. I am sure that I can learn Statistics. 4.33 1.09 Highly

Confident

2. I think I can handle difficult lessons in Statistics

3. I can get good grades in Statistics.

SUB-AVERAGE

(4-6) refer to the STUDENT’S PERCEPTION on Statistics as a

subject

4. I think statistics is a worthwhile, necessary subject

5. I will use Statistics in many ways as a professional.

6. I’ll need a good understanding of Statistics for my research

work

SUB-AVERAGE
(7-9) refer to students’ ATTITUDES on the use of computer in
learning

7. Computer makes learning fun and easy.

8. I think working with computers would be enjoyable and

stimulating.
9. Computers help a lot in learning.

SUB-AVERAGE
Note: for the SUB-AVERAGE, to compute for the MEAN and SD, the means of the 3
statements will serve as the data.
The lowest SD (value close to zero) shows that the respondents most agreed on
the statement

6|Measure of variation Lynn M Remo2020

Answer the following questions

1. Based on the data, what can you say about the students’ confidence in
learning Statistics? Which among the three statements (1-3) they’d agree
most?
2. Based on the data, what can you say about the students’ perception in
learning Statistics? Which among the three statements (4 – 6) they’d agree
most?
3. Based on the data, what can you say about the students’ Attitude in learning
Statistics? Which among the three statements (7 – 9) they’d agree most?

Table 1. Scoring range and Qualitative Description of the Confidence,

Perception and the Use of computer in learning Statistics
Scoring range Confidence in Perception on Attitudes on the
Learning Statistics as a Use of Computer
Statistics subject in Learning
(1-3) (4-6) (7-9)
1.00 – 1.79 – Not confident at all Not Important at all Does not help at all
Strongly Disagree

1.80 – 2.59 – Not Confident Not Important Does not help

Disagree

2.60 – 3.39 – Neutral Neutral Neutral

Neutral

3.40 – 4.19 – Confident Important Helps in learning

Agree

4.20 – 5.00 – Highly Confident Very Important Helps a lot in

Strongly Agree learning

5 – Strongly agree 3 – neutral 1 – strongly disagree

4 – agree 2 – disagree

7|Measure of variation Lynn M Remo2020

 Confidence Perception attitude
respondents 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
1 5 4 5 5 4 3 5 3 5
2 5 4 5 5 4 5 5 3 5
3 5 3 5 5 4 5 5 5 5
4 5 1 4 5 4 5 5 5 5
5 5 5 5 5 4 5 4 5 5
6 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 4
7 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
8 4 5 5 5 5 4 5 5 4
9 3 5 5 5 5 4 5 4 3
10 3 2 5 1 5 4 5 4 3
11 1 5 5 4 5 3 5 4 1
12 5 5 5 5 5 1 5 3 5
13 5 5 3 5 5 2 5 1 5
14 5 5 1 5 5 5 5 2 5
15 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
16 1 5 5 3 5 5 5 5 1
17 5 5 5 5 3 5 3 5 5
18 5 5 5 5 3 5 3 5 5
19 5 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
20 5 4 5 4 5 3 5 5 5
21 5 5 5 4 5 4 5 5 5
22 5 5 2 4 5 4 5 2 5
23 4 5 5 4 2 4 2 5 4
24 4 5 5 5 2 5 2 5 4
25 4 5 5 5 2 5 2 5 4
26 5 3 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
27 5 1 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
28 4 2 5 5 5 3 5 5 4
29 4 5 4 5 5 4 5 4 4
30 4 5 4 3 5 2 5 4 4

8|Measure of variation Lynn M Remo2020