ASSIGNMENT A

Role of Review in Research

A literature review surveys books, scholarly articles, and any other sources
relevant to a particular issue, area of research, or theory, and by so doing,
provides a description, summary, and critical evaluation of these works in
relation to the research problem being investigated. Literature reviews are
designed to provide an overview of sources you have explored while
researching a particular topic and to demonstrate to your readers how your
research fits within a larger field of study.
A literature review may consist of simply a summary of key sources, but in
the social sciences, a literature review usually has an organizational pattern
and combines both summary and synthesis, often within specific conceptual
categories. A summary is a recap of the important information of the source,
but a synthesis is a re-organization, or a reshuffling, of that information in a
way that informs how you are planning to investigate a research problem. The
analytical features of a literature review might:
 Give a new interpretation of old material or combine new with old
interpretations,
 Trace the intellectual progression of the field, including major debates,
 Depending on the situation, evaluate the sources and advise the reader on
the most pertinent or relevant research, or
 Usually in the conclusion of a literature review, identify where gaps exist in
how a problem has been researched to date.

Topic or Problem for Review

IMPACT OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON SOCIAL LIFE OF TEENAGERS IN INDIA

Introduction

Today the whole world is in the grip of information and communication

technology, which has maximized the scope of exchanging the ideas with rest of
the world. Modern Technology has turned the entire world into a “Global village”.
But it came with its negative and positive sides. Social media has reduced the
entire world into a village. We can interact with the entire world with a single
click. The same is applicable on the youth. Youth can exchange their ideas and
information with the world and also can get the ideas and information from the
world to get more opportunities of job, business, study, earning from home, etc.
Social media give the opportunity to the youth to make new friends. It also helps
them to maintain the old friendships. Social media has made its impact on all
sections of the society. People are under the influence of internet and social
media networking sites. Corporate sector is playing dominating role on all social
media and making its influence on society by providing them different offers. The
study is important in the manner that teenagers are under the influence of social
media. They want to remain connected with the social media site more and more.
The results of the study show a picture of the impact of social media on
teenagers. Use of social media sites is minimum for educational purpose.
Teenagers were more interested to be connected with their social media friends
and society then the real society. Social activities are very important to maintain
social network with the real world. But the teenagers prefer social media sites
rather than to participate in social activities.

Statement of Problem

After the invention of internet the entire world became global platform. At
present internet has become a most important source of information. People are
dependent on internet for seeking the information. Different social media
networking sites become the friend of an individual. It has been observed that the
teenagers are more engaged in social media networking then live social activities.
Smart phones and internet pack offers being provided by different telecom
companies has made it easy to the teenagers to spend more time on social media
networking sites. The teenagers have shifted their attention to the invisible
society. No doubt social media has contributed a lot for the development of the
society, but the negative aspects of the social media are matter of worry
throughout the world. Therefore this problem was selected for the study.

Importance of the Present Study

The study is important, because number of social media networking sites is

providing their services. Smartphone companies are launching the mobiles with
new features every day. Different telecom companies are providing different
offers. These offers are making the teenagers addicted of internet and social
media networking. Teenage is the age where the things can easily make impact
on their minds. This study will be important not only for teenagers but also for
their parents. Parents can check the day to day activities of their child.

Scope of the Study

 The study is mainly focused on the impact of social media on social life of
teenagers. The study was conducted on the teenagers of Shimla city, a capital city
of Himachal Pradesh in India. Being a capital city all the facilities like smartphones,
accessibility of internet, highest learning institutions and other state offices are
easily accessible in Shimla city. Technological advancement is also more in Shimla
than other parts of the state. The study was restricted to six social media sites
namely: Facebook, WhatsApp, YouTube, Google, Twitter and Instagram. Sosyal
Çalışmalar Üzerine Akademik Perspektif Dergisi Journal of Academic Perspective
on Social Studies Yıl: 2019, Sayı: 1, 13-24 Year: 2019, Issue: 1, 13-24 17 These are
the commonly used social media sited among teenagers. Other social media sites
were excluded from the study.

Sampling

For the purpose of this research 200 samples were selected with the help of
random-cumpurposive sampling. There were following conditions to select the
samples: 1. Age of the sample between 15-19 years. 2. Having smartphone user.
3. Having internet pack for more than 70 days. 4. Active account on different
social media sites. By the age of 15 years parents can allow their children mobile
phones. Below this age the chances of using the mobile phones are minimum. At
this age teenagers remain active in their all spheres of life. That is why there was
age restriction. Among the 200 samples 100 were boys and 100 were girls.

Objectives of the Study

In general the main objective of the study was to examine the impact of Social
Media on the social life of teenagers in India. The other objectives were:

1. To study the use pattern of social media by the teenagers.

2. To examine the purpose of use of social media networking by the teenagers.

3. To analyse the choice of the teenagers between social media and other social
activities.

Hypotheses

1. Teenagers spent more time on social media networking sites.

2. Teenagers prefer spent time with social media networking then other social
activities.

Data Collection

The data was collected from primary as well as secondary resources. The primary
data was collected with the help of well-structured questionnaire. Before
distributing it to the sample respondents the questionnaire was distributed to five
academicians having research knowledge for review and comments. After the
changes suggested by the reviewers the questionnaire was finalised and a pilot
survey was done on fifteen teenagers who were not part of the study. The
secondary data was collected from the previous studies, internet, different
libraries, etc.

Reviews of the Previous Studies

Badawy and Hashem (2015) conducted a study with the aim whether the use of
social media has impact on academic performance of students’ or not? The study
concluded that there was no significant relationship between using social media
and the academic performance of students’.

Peter (2015) conducted a study in Lagos University to fulfil the Bachelor degree in
education administration. The purpose of the study was to examine the influence
of Social Media and Academic Performance of students in University of Lagos.
Findings of this study show that a large number of students in University of Lagos
are addicted of social media. The researcher suggested that the use of social
media should also be for the purpose educational activities; researcher also
suggested that Social Networking Sites should create new pages to enhance
academic activities.

Mensah (2016) conducted a study on the impact of social media on students’

academic performance in Malaysia Tertiary Institution. The study was aimed to
examining the impact of social media on academic performance. The researcher
found that there was a significant impact of social media on students’ academic
performance in Malaysia Tertiary Institution. The researcher also concluded that
time appropriateness and health addiction has a stronger significant influence on
students’ academic performance.
 Sidiqui and Singh (2016) analysed the positive and negative aspects of Social
Media. The focused areas of the study were education, business, society and
youth. The findings of the study show that students can increase the quality rate
of collaboration and also can increase the knowledge. Simultaneously it distracts
the students. Business can be expended on social media, but there is a parallel
fear of negative comments about the articles by the customer on social media.
Social media can help the people to meet with each other easily. Social media can
addict the people. Youngsters can stay in touch with the entire world with a click.
But negative thoughts can come in their young minds and can increase the
criminal activities among youngsters.

Akram and Kumar (2017) studied positive and negative effect of social media on
society. The focused areas of the study were health, education, business, society
and youth. They researchers found that social networking has become the routine
for every individual, and are dependent on technology. Networking has exposed
the quality and rate of coordinated effort for students. Business persons use the
social media to upgrade their business organizations. Social media has Sosyal
Çalışmalar Üzerine Akademik Perspektif Dergisi Journal of Academic Perspective
on Social Studies Yıl: 2019, Sayı: 1, 13-24 Year: 2019, Issue: 1, 13-24 16 its own
merits which influence the people positively. Yet it has demerits also which
influence individuals negatively.

References

Akram, W. and Kumar, R., (2017), A Study on Positive and Negative Effects of
Social Media on Society, International Journal of Computer Science and
Engineering (open access), Vol.5, Issue 10, October, 2017, ISSN (e): 2247-2693,
pp. 347-354.

El-Badawy, Tarek, A., and Hashem, Yasmin, (2015), The Impact of Social Media on
the Academic Development of School Students, International Journal of Business
Administration, Vol. 6, No. 1, November 2015, ISSN (e): 1923-4015, (p): 1923-
4007, pp. 46-52.
Mensah, Sandra Okyeadie (2016), The Impact of Social Media on Students,
Academic Performance-A Case of Malaysia Tertiary Institution, International
Journal of Education, Learning and Training, Vol. 1, (No. 1), November, 2016, ISSN:
2289-6694, pp. 14-21.

Peter, Osharive, (2015), Social Media and Academic Performance of Students in

University of Lagos, B. A. Research Project, Submitted to the Department of
Education Administration, Faculty of Education, University of Lagos for the Degree
in Education Administration.

Shahjahan, A. T. M. and Chisty, Kutub Uddin, (2014), Social Media Research and
its Effect on our Society, International Scholarly and Scientific Research &
Innovation, Vol. 8, No. 6, ISNI: 0000000091950263, pp. 2009-2013.

Siddiqui, Shabnoor and Singh, Tajinder, (2016), Social Media its Impact with
Positive and Negative Aspects, International Journal of Computer Applications
Technology and Research, Vol. 5, Issue 2, ISSN: 2319-8656, pp. 71-75.

ASSIGNMENT B

Graphical Representation is a way of analysing numerical data. It exhibits the

relation between data, ideas, information and concepts in a diagram. It is easy to
understand and it is one of the most important learning strategies. It always
depends on the type of information in a particular domain. There are different
types of graphical representation. Some of them are as follows:
  Line Graphs – Line graph or the linear graph is used to display the
continuous data and it is useful for predicting future events over time.
 Bar Graphs – Bar Graph is used to display the category of data and it
compares the data using solid bars to represent the quantities.
 Histograms – The graph that uses bars to represent the frequency of
numerical data that are organised into intervals. Since all the intervals are
equal and continuous, all the bars have the same width.
 Line Plot – It shows the frequency of data on a given number line. ‘ x ‘ is
placed above a number line each time when that data occurs again.
 Frequency Table – The table shows the number of pieces of data that falls
within the given interval.
 Circle Graph – Also known as the pie chart that shows the relationships of
the parts of the whole. The circle is considered with 100% and the
categories occupied is represented with that specific percentage like 15%,
56%, etc.
 Stem and Leaf Plot – In the stem and leaf plot, the data are organised from
least value to the greatest value. The digits of the least place values from
the leaves and the next place value digit forms the stems.
 Box and Whisker Plot – The plot diagram summarises the data by dividing
into four parts. Box and whisker show the range (spread) and the middle
( median) of the data.

General Rules for Graphical Representation of Data

There are certain rules to effectively present the information in the graphical
representation. They are:

 Suitable Title: Make sure that the appropriate title is given to the graph
which indicates the subject of the presentation.
 Measurement Unit: Mention the measurement unit in the graph.
 Proper Scale: To represent the data in an accurate manner, choose a
proper scale.
 Index: Index the appropriate colours, shades, lines, design in the graphs for
better understanding.
 Data Sources: Include the source of information wherever it is necessary at
the bottom of the graph.
 Keep it Simple: Construct a graph in an easy way that everyone can
understand.
  Neat: Choose the correct size, fonts, colours etc in such a way that the
graph should be a visual aid for the presentation of information.

What is a Graph in Excel?

In simple terms, a graph is a visual element that represents data in a worksheet.

You will be able to analyze the data more efficiently by looking at a graph in Excel
rather than numbers in a dataset. Excel covers a wide range of graphs that you
can use to represent your data. Creating a graph in Excel is easy. The graph below
depicts the sum of active COVID cases that are grouped by WHO region.

Looking at a graph helps us analyze various metrics just by taking a glance at it.

The next section will help you understand the different types of graphs available.

What are the Types of Graphs Available in Excel?

Excel has most of the common graphs that are used for statistics. The types of
graphs in Excel include:
1. Bar/Column Graphs

A bar graph shows information about two or more groups. Bar graphs are mainly
used to make comparisons across a range.

2. Pie Graphs

A pie chart is nothing but a circular graph representing data in the form of a
pie/circle. It is divided into different sections, each one representing a proportion
of the whole.
3. Line Graphs

A line graph is formed by connecting a series of values/data points using straight

lines. A line graph can be used when you want to check whether the values are
increasing or decreasing over some time.
4. Scatter Plot

A scatter plot, also called a coordinate graph, uses dots to represent the data
values for two different variables, one on each axis. This graph is used to find a
pattern/ relationship between two sets of data.

5. Area Chart

An area chart depicts the change of two or more data points over time. They are
similar to the line charts, except the area charts are filled with color below the
line. This chart is useful to visualize the area of various series relative to each
other.
Before you make a graph in Excel, it is important to first cleanse your data. The
next section will cover a few Data Cleaning techniques.

Let’s move forward and understand how to make a graph in Excel.

How to Make a Graph in Excel

 You must select the data for which a chart is to be created.

 In the INSERT menu, select Recommended Charts.
 Choose any chart from the list of charts Excel recommends for your data on the
Recommended Charts tab, and click it to preview how it will look with your
data.
 Please click on All Charts if you are unable to locate a chart you like.
 Click on the chart that you prefer and then click OK.
 You can add chart elements such as axis titles or data labels, customize the
appearance of the chart, or change the data displayed in the chart by clicking
on Chart Elements, Chart Styles, and Chart Filters in the upper-right corner of
the chart.
 Click on the chart TOOLS tab on the ribbon to add additional design and
formatting capabilities and then click the options you desire under the DESIGN
and FORMAT tabs.
Creating a graph in Excel is easy. This step-by-step tutorial will show you how to
make a graph in Excel. The demo helps you create:

 Bar Graph
 Pie Chart
 Scatter Plot
NOTE: The dataset that we will be using comprises the latest data on Coronavirus
cases, country-wise. It has records of:

 WHO Region of every country.

 Confirmed cases
 Active cases
 Recovered cases
Steps
1.

1
Open Microsoft Excel. Its app icon resembles a green box with a white "X" on it.
2.

2
Click Blank workbook. It's a white box in the upper-left side of the window.
3.

3
Consider the type of graph you want to make. There are three basic types of
graph that you can create in Excel, each of which works best for certain types of
data:[1]
 Bar - Displays one or more sets of data using vertical bars. Best for listing
differences in data over time or comparing two similar sets of data.
 Line - Displays one or more sets of data using horizontal lines. Best for
showing growth or decline in data over time.
 Pie - Displays one set of data as fractions of a whole. Best for showing a
visual distribution of data.
4.

4
Add your graph's headers. The headers, which determine the labels for individual
sections of data, should go in the top row of the spreadsheet, starting with
cell B1 and moving right from there.
 For example, to create a set of data called "Number of Lights" and
another set called "Power Bill", you would type Number of Lights into
cell B1 and Power Bill into C1
  Always leave cell A1 blank.
5.

5
Add your graph's labels. The labels that separate rows of data go in the A column
(starting in cell A2). Things like time (e.g., "Day 1", "Day 2", etc.) are usually used
as labels.
 For example, if you're comparing your budget with your friend's budget in
a bar graph, you might label each column by week or month.
 You should add a label for each row of data.
6.

6
Enter your graph's data. Starting in the cell immediately below your first header
and immediately to the right of your first label (most likely B2), enter the numbers
that you want to use for your graph.
 You can press the Tab ↹ key once you're done typing in one cell to enter
the data and jump one cell to the right if you're filling in multiple cells in a
row.
7.

7
Select your data. Click and drag your mouse from the top-left corner of the data
group (e.g., cell A1) to the bottom-right corner, making sure to select the headers
and labels as well.
8.

8
Click the Insert tab. It's near the top of the Excel window. Doing so will open a
toolbar below the Insert tab.
9.
9
Select a graph type. In the "Charts" section of the Insert toolbar, click the visual
representation of the type of graph that you want to use. A drop-down menu
with different options will appear.
 A bar graph resembles a series of vertical bars.
 A line graph resembles two or more squiggly lines.
 A pie graph resembles a sectioned-off circle.
10.

10
Select a graph format. In your selected graph's drop-down menu, click a version
of the graph (e.g., 3D) that you want to use in your Excel document. The graph
will be created in your document.
 You can also hover over a format to see a preview of what it will look like
when using your data.
11.

11
Add a title to the graph. Double-click the "Chart Title" text at the top of the chart,
then delete the "Chart Title" text, replace it with your own, and click a blank space
on the graph.
 On a Mac, you'll instead click the Design tab, click Add Chart Element,
select Chart Title, click a location, and type in the graph's title.[2]
12.

12
Save your document. To do so:
 Windows - Click File, click Save As, double-click This PC, click a save
location on the left side of the window, type the document's name into
the "File name" text box, and click Save.
 Mac - Click File, click Save As..., enter the document's name in the "Save
As" field, select a save location by clicking the "Where" box and clicking a
folder, and click Save.
 ASSIGNMENT C

Mean
The mean represents the average value in a dataset. The mean is important
because it gives us an idea of where the center value is located in a dataset. The
mean is also important because it carries a piece of information from every
observation in a dataset.

The mean and the median are both measures of central tendency that give an
indication of the average value of a distribution of figures.

The mean is the average of a group of scores. The scores added up and divided by
the number of scores. The mean is sensitive to extreme scores when population
samples are small. For example, for a class of 20 students, if there were two
students who scored well above the others, the mean will be skewed higher than
the rest of the scores might indicate. Means are better used with larger sample
sizes.

The median is the point at which half the scores are above and half the scores are
below. Medians are less sensitive to extreme scores and are probably a better
indicator generally of where the middle of the class is achieving, especially for
smaller sample sizes.

The larger the population sample (number of scores) the closer mean and median
become. In fact, in a perfect bell curve, the mean and median are identical.
Standard deviation
Standard deviation (SD) is a widely used measurement of variability used in
statistics. It shows how much variation there is from the average (mean). A low SD
indicates that the data points tend to be close to the mean, whereas a high SD
indicates that the data are spread out over a large range of values.
One SD away from the mean in either direction on the horizontal axis (the orange
area on the graph) accounts for around 68 percent of the people in this group.
Two SDs away from the mean (the orange and beige areas) account for roughly 95
percent of the people. And three SDs (the orange, beige and blue areas) account
for about 99 percent of the people.

If this curve were flatter and more spread out, the SD would have to be larger in
order to account for those 68 percent or so of the people. The SD can tell you
how spread out the examples in a set are from the mean.

So if you are comparing test scores for different classes or cohorts, the SD will tell
you how diverse those scores are.

For example, if you were to calculate the SD of scores from a class of students of
similar ability, you would expect it to be low, because the scores would all be
close to the mean. On the other hand, you would expect the SD of scores from a
mixed-ability class to be higher. If these calculations did not conform to
expectations, you would want to look more closely at the data to check for
inaccuracies.
Standard deviations – interactive illustration
The following interactive illustrates standard deviations for two very different
classes. One class has a standard deviation of 10, while the other a standard
deviation of 20. Click on the buttons to see the effect this has on the spread of
results.
Large/Small Standard Deviation
0102030405060708090100Probability Density00.010.020.030.0450.00%

Please choose which graph to show.

Class A Class B
Class A: Median = 50, StdDev = 20
68% of the students lie within one standard deviation, that is approx 2/3 of all
students obtained a mark between 30 and 70%. 95% of the students lie withing 2
standard deviations and therefore obtained marks between 10 and 90%.

Standard Deviation (often abbreviated as "Std Dev" or "SD") provides an

indication of how far the individual responses to a question vary or "deviate" from
the mean. SD tells the researcher how spread out the responses are -- are they
concentrated around the mean, or scattered far & wide?

A correlational research design investigates relationships

between variables without the researcher controlling or manipulating any of
them.

A correlation reflects the strength and/or direction of the relationship between

two (or more) variables. The direction of a correlation can be either positive or
negative.

When to use correlational research

Correlational research is ideal for gathering data quickly from natural settings.
That helps you generalize your findings to real-life situations in an externally valid
way.

There are a few situations where correlational research is an appropriate choice.

To investigate non-causal relationships

You want to find out if there is an association between two variables, but you
don’t expect to find a causal relationship between them.

Correlational research can provide insights into complex real-world relationships,

helping researchers develop theories and make predictions.

ExampleYou want to know if there is any correlation between the number of

children people have and which political party they vote for. You don’t think
having more children causes people to vote differently—it’s more likely that both
are influenced by other variables such as age, religion, ideology and
socioeconomic status. But a strong correlation could be useful for making
predictions about voting patterns.

To explore causal relationships between variables

You think there is a causal relationship between two variables, but it is
impractical, unethical, or too costly to conduct experimental research that
manipulates one of the variables.

Correlational research can provide initial indications or additional support for

theories about causal relationships.

ExampleYou want to investigate whether greenhouse gas emissions cause global

warming. It is not practically possible to do an experiment that controls global
emissions over time, but through observation and analysis you can show a strong
correlation that supports the theory.

To test new measurement tools

You have developed a new instrument for measuring your variable, and you need
to test its reliability or validity.

Correlational research can be used to assess whether a tool consistently or

accurately captures the concept it aims to measure.

ExampleYou develop a new scale to measure loneliness in young children based

on anecdotal evidence during lockdowns. To validate this scale, you need to test
whether it’s actually measuring loneliness. You collect data on loneliness using
three different measures, including the new scale, and test the degrees of
correlations between the different measurements. Finding high correlations
means that your scale is valid.

How to collect correlational data

There are many different methods you can use in correlational research. In the
social and behavioral sciences, the most common data collection methods for this
type of research include surveys, observations, and secondary data.

It’s important to carefully choose and plan your methods to ensure the reliability
and validity of your results. You should carefully select a representative sample so
that your data reflects the population you’re interested in without research bias.
Surveys
In survey research, you can use questionnaires to measure your variables of
interest. You can conduct surveys online, by mail, by phone, or in person.

Surveys are a quick, flexible way to collect standardized data from many
participants, but it’s important to ensure that your questions are worded in an
unbiased way and capture relevant insights.

ExampleTo find out if there is a relationship between vegetarianism and income,

you send out a questionnaire about diet to a sample of people from different
income brackets. You statistically analyze the responses to determine whether
vegetarians generally have higher incomes.

Naturalistic observation
Naturalistic observation is a type of field research where you gather data about a
behavior or phenomenon in its natural environment.

This method often involves recording, counting, describing, and categorizing

actions and events. Naturalistic observation can include both qualitative and
quantitative elements, but to assess correlation, you collect data that can
be analyzed quantitatively (e.g., frequencies, durations, scales, and amounts).

Naturalistic observation lets you easily generalize your results to real world
contexts, and you can study experiences that aren’t replicable in lab settings. But
data analysis can be time-consuming and unpredictable, and researcher bias
may skew the interpretations.

ExampleTo find out if there is a correlation between gender and class

participation, you observe college seminars, note the frequency and duration of
students’ contributions, and categorize them based on gender. You statistically
analyze the data to determine whether men are more likely to speak up in class
than women.

Secondary data
Instead of collecting original data, you can also use data that has already been
collected for a different purpose, such as official records, polls, or previous
studies.

Using secondary data is inexpensive and fast, because data collection is complete.
However, the data may be unreliable, incomplete or not entirely relevant, and
you have no control over the reliability or validity of the data collection
procedures.

ExampleTo find out if working hours are related to mental health, you use official
national statistics and scientific studies from several different countries to
combine data on average working hours and rates of mental illness. You
statistically analyze the data to see if countries that work fewer hours have better
mental health outcomes.

How to analyze correlational data

After collecting data, you can statistically analyze the relationship between
variables using correlation or regression analyses, or both. You can also visualize
the relationships between variables with a scatterplot.

Different types of correlation coefficients and regression analyses are appropriate

for your data based on their levels of measurement and distributions.

Correlation analysis
Using a correlation analysis, you can summarize the relationship between
variables into a correlation coefficient: a single number that describes the
strength and direction of the relationship between variables. With this number,
you’ll quantify the degree of the relationship between variables.

The Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient, also known as Pearson’s r, is

commonly used for assessing a linear relationship between two quantitative
variables.

Correlation coefficients are usually found for two variables at a time, but you can
use a multiple correlation coefficient for three or more variables.

How to Calculate the Mean and Standard Deviation in Excel

The mean represents the average value in a dataset. It gives us a good idea of
where the center of a dataset is located.
The standard deviation represents how spread out the values are in a dataset. It
gives us an idea of how closely the observations are clustered around the mean.
Using only these two values, we can understand a great deal about the
distribution of values in a dataset.
To calculate the mean of a dataset in Excel, we can use
the =AVERAGE(Range) function where Range is the range of values.
To calculate the standard deviation of a dataset, we can use
the =STDEV.S(Range) function, where Range is the range of values.
This tutorial explains how to use these functions in practice.
Technical Note

Both the STDEV() and STDEV.S() function calculate the sample standard
deviation.

You can use the STDEV.P() function to calculate the population standard deviation
if your dataset represents the entire population of values.

However, in most cases we’re working with sample data rather than an entire
population so we use the STDEV.S() function.
Example 1: Mean & Standard Deviation of a Single Dataset
The following screenshot shows how to calculate the mean and standard
deviation of a single dataset in Excel:
The mean of the dataset is 16.4 and the standard deviation is 9.13.
Example 2: Mean & Standard Deviation of Multiple Datasets
Suppose we have multiple datasets in Excel:

To calculate the mean and standard deviation of the first dataset, we can use the
following two formulas:
 Mean: =AVERAGE(B2:B21)
 Standard Deviation: =STDEV.S(B2:B21)
Next, we can highlight cells B22:B23 and hover over the bottom right corner of
cell B23 until a tiny + appears. We can then click and drag the formulas over to
the next two columns:
How Can You Calculate Correlation Using Excel?
Chip Stapleton is a Series 7 and Series 66 license holder, CFA Level 1 exam holder,
and currently holds a Life, Accident, and Health License in Indiana. He has 8 years
experience in finance, from financial planning and wealth management to
corporate finance and FP&A.
Learn about our Financial Review Board

What Is Correlation?

Correlation measures the linear relationship between two variables. By measuring

and relating the variance of each variable, correlation gives an indication of the
strength of the relationship.

To put it another way, correlation answers the question: How much does variable
A (the independent variable) explain variable B (the dependent variable)?
KEY TAKEAWAYS

 Correlation is the statistical linear correspondence of variation between

two variables.
 In finance, correlation is used in several facets of analysis including the
calculation of portfolio standard deviation.
 Computing correlation can be time-consuming, but software like Excel
makes it easy to calculate.

Understanding Correlation

The Formula for Correlation

Correlation combines several important and related statistical concepts, namely,

variance and standard deviation. Variance is the dispersion of a variable around
the mean, and standard deviation is the square root of variance.

The formula is:

Since correlation wants to assess the linear relationship of two variables, what's
really required is to see what amount of covariance those two variables have, and
to what extent that covariance is reflected by the standard deviations of each
variable individually.

Common Mistakes With Correlation

The single most common mistake is assuming a correlation approaching +/- 1 is

statistically significant. A reading approaching +/- 1 definitely increases the
chances of actual statistical significance, but without further testing, it's
impossible to know.

The statistical testing of a correlation can get complicated for a number of

reasons; it's not at all straightforward. A critical assumption of correlation is that
the variables are independent and that the relationship between them is linear. In
theory, you would test these claims to determine if a correlation calculation is
appropriate.

Remember, correlation between two variables does NOT imply that A caused B or
vice versa.
The second most common mistake is forgetting to normalize the data into a
common unit. If calculating a correlation on two betas, then the units are already
normalized: beta itself is the unit. However, if you want to correlate stocks, it's
critical you normalize them into percent return, and not share price changes. This
happens all too frequently, even among investment professionals.

For stock price correlation, you are essentially asking two questions: What is the
return over a certain number of periods, and how does that return correlate to
another security's return over the same period?

This is also why correlating stock prices is difficult: Two securities might have a
high correlation if the return is daily percent changes over the past 52 weeks, but
a low correlation if the return is monthly changes over the past 52 weeks. Which
one is "better"? There really is no perfect answer, and it depends on the purpose
of the test.

Finding Correlation in Excel

There are several methods to calculate correlation in Excel. The simplest is to get
two data sets side-by-side and use the built-in correlation formula:

This is a convenient way to calculate a correlation between just two data sets. But
what if you want to create a correlation matrix across a range of data sets? To do
this, you need to use Excel's Data Analysis plugin. The plugin can be found
in the Data tab, under Analyze.

Select the table of returns. In this case, our columns are titled, so we want to
check the box "Labels in first row," so Excel knows to treat these as titles. Then
you can choose to output on the same sheet or on a new sheet

Once you hit enter, the data is automatically made. You can add some text and
conditional formatting to clean up the result.