Chapter 4: Standardized Scores and

the Normal Distribution

The simplest standardized scores are called
z scores. They tell you the distance of a
raw score from the mean in terms of
standard deviations (the sign of the z
score tells you whether a score is above
or below the mean). Here is the formula:
Xµ
z
Properties of z scores: 
– The mean of a complete set of z scores is
always 0, and its standard deviation will
always be 1.0.
– Converting a set of raw scores into z scores
will not change the shape of the distribution
at all.
– However, z scores are especially helpful
when used in conjunction with a normal
distribution.

Chapter 4 Prepared by Samantha Gaies, M.A. 1

Try this example of computing
z scores:

Jan just received three midterm grades

(see table below). Which grade is asso-
ciated with the highest z score?
X µ σ z
Ps yc ho lo g y 68 65 6
Mathe matic s 77 77 9
Ge o lo g y 83 89 8

To get you started, here is the

calculation of the first z score:

z
 68  65  0.50
6

Chapter 4 Prepared by Samantha Gaies, M.A. 2

 T Scores
– Transform z scores into T scores, which
follow a distribution with mean = 50 and
σ = 10, using this formula:
T  10 z  50
– In the table below, first find the z score
for each subject, and then the T score.
We will get you started by calculating z
and T for Alice:
Subj X z T Score
Alice 10 1.26 62.6
Bob 9
Carol 3
Ted 5

Given: µ = 6.0, σ = 3.18

z 
10  6   1.26
3.18
T  10 z  50  101.26  50  62.6
Chapter 4 Prepared by Samantha Gaies, M.A. 3
 SAT Scores
– Transform z scores into SAT scores,
which follow a distribution with mean =
500 and σ = 100, using this formula:
SAT  100 z  500
– In the table below, find the SAT score for
each subject. You can use the z scores you
calculated for the previous slide.
Subj X z SAT
Alice 10 1.26 626
Bob 9
Carol 3
Ted 5

Given: µ = 6.0, σ = 3.18

– Note that, traditionally, T scores have been used
as a way to standardize the scores from
psychological tests, whereas SAT and related
scores have been used by ETS and other
companies that administer standardized aptitude
and achievement/ability tests.

Chapter 4 Prepared by Samantha Gaies, M.A. 4

 IQ Scores
– You can transform z scores into Stanford-
Binet IQ scores, which follow a distribu-
tion with mean = 100 and σ = 16, using
this formula: IQ  16 z  100
– In the table below, find the IQ score for
each subject. You can use the z scores
you calculated for the T or SAT scores.
Subj X z IQ
Alice 10 1.26 120.2
Bob 9
Carol 3
Ted 5

Given: µ = 6.0, σ = 3.18

– To find WAIS IQ scores instead, multiply

the z score by 15, instead of 16. For
Alice, the WAIS IQ score would be 118.9.

Chapter 4 Prepared by Samantha Gaies, M.A. 5

The Normal Distribution
• It is the most commonly used theo-
retical distribution in psychological
research.
• It is unimodal and symmetric, and
its tails extend infinitely in both the
positive and negative directions.
• It is described as bell-shaped, but it
is defined by a specific mathemati-
cal equation.
• It arises frequently, in an approxi-
mate form, in nature.
• When the area under the normal
curve is used to determine propor-
tions of the population, the whole
area is defined as 1.0 (or 100%).
Chapter 4 Prepared by Samantha Gaies, M.A. 6
 Parameters of the
Normal Distribution
The normal distribution is actually a
family of distributions each
defined by two parameters: the
mean and the standard deviation.
• Two normal distributions can have
different means and the same
standard deviation; the same mean
and different standard deviations; or
they can differ on both parameters.
• However, all normal distributions have
the same shape.
• The standard normal distribution has
the following parameters: μ = 0 and
σ = 1. It arises whenever you trans-
form all the scores in any normal
distribution into z scores.

Chapter 4 Prepared by Samantha Gaies, M.A. 7

 Areas under the Normal
Distribution
• There is a table of the standard normal
distribution that tells us the exact area
under the normal curve, as a proportion
of the total, between the mean and any z
score, to two decimal places.
• In the figure below, you can see the
areas corresponding to z scores of 1, 2,
and 3, on both sides of the distribution.
– There is a table to determine the exact
area under the curve
– This area is the probability of a particular
event

z scores
Chapter 4 Prepared by Samantha Gaies, M.A. 8
Finding the Area above a positive z
score or below a negative z score:
– Find the percent area between the mean
and the given z score in Table A of your
text.
– Subtract that percentage from 100.
– Divide by 100 to convert to a proportion or
probability.
Finding the Area below a positive z
score or above a negative z
score:
– Find the percent area between the mean
and the given z score in Table A of your
text.
– Add 50 to that percentage.
– Divide by 100 to convert to a proportion or
probability.

Chapter 4 Prepared by Samantha Gaies, M.A. 9

 Finding the z Score Corresponding
to a Given Area in the Positive
Tail of the Normal Distribution
– e.g.) What z score does a student need
in order to be among the highest 12%
of scores?
– The area you want is not between the
mean and z, it is above z, so subtract
the given percent from 50.00. For this
example, the area you will be looking
for is 50.00 – 12.00 = 38.00.
– Look in the body of Table A for the
percent area that comes closest to the
area calculated in the previous step,
and read off the corresponding z score.
– For this example, the z score that cuts
off the top 12% falls midway between
1.17 and 1.18, so the answer is that the
student needs a z score that is at least
1.175 to be in the top 12% of the distri-
bution.

Chapter 4 Prepared by Samantha Gaies, M.A. 10

 Finding the z Score Corresponding
to a Given Area in the Negative
Tail of the Normal Distribution
– e.g.) Below what z score does the
lowest 8% of the normal distribution
fall?
– The area you want is not between the
mean and z, it is below z, so subtract
the given percent from 50.00. For this
example, the area you will be looking
for is 50.00 – 8.00 = 42.00.
– For this example, the z score that cuts
off the top 8% falls midway between
1.40 and 1.41, so the answer for the
top 8% would be 1.405.
– Because you are looking for the bottom
8%, place a minus sign in front of the z
score you found in the previous step—
i.e., 8% of the normal distribution is
below a z score of –1.405.

Chapter 4 Prepared by Samantha Gaies, M.A. 11

 Areas in the Middle of the
Normal Distribution
– It is often useful to know the z
scores that enclose a given
amount of area in the middle of
the normal distribution—e.g., the
middle 80%.
– The area you need to find in the
body of Table A is half of that
area – in this case, 40.00.
– The z score that comes closest
to containing 40.00% between
the mean and z is 1.28.
– Because of the symmetry of the
normal distribution, the two z
scores that enclose the middle
80% are (approximately) –1.28
and +1.28.
Chapter 4 Prepared by Samantha Gaies, M.A. 12