VARIABLES and

LEVELS of DATA
MEASUREMENT

Prepared by:
M. P. Ordoñez
Nov. 21, 2014
 Variable

Qualitative
Quantitativ
or
e
Categorical

Discrete Continuous
 Variable

Independent Dependent
 Variables
• What are variables?

- properties or characteristics of an event,

object, or person that can take on
different values

- value not constant (as opposed to a

constant variable)
 Variables

• In a research, the experimenter can

manipulate the values of a variable and
obtain different results by that
manipulation.
 Variables

• Example:
In a research on 4 different brands of
analgesics (Biogesic, Ibuprofen, Calpol,
and, Medicol) the experimenter studies the
effects of each brand.
 Variables

In this case, the 4 different brands are the

independent variables.

The various effects of the 4 different

brands are the dependent variables.
 Variables

 Dependent variables represent the

output or the effect.

 Independent variables represent the

inputs or causes, or are tested to see if
they are the cause.
EXAMPLES OF DEPENDENT
AND INDEPENDENT
VARIABLES
 Examples

• Example 1:
Can blueberries slow down aging?
 Examples

• A study indicates that antioxidants found in

blueberries may slow down the process of
aging. In this study, 19-month-old rats
(equivalent to 60-year-old humans) were
fed either their standard diet or a diet
supplemented by either blueberry,
strawberry, or spinach powder.
 Examples

After eight weeks, the rats were given

memory and motor skills tests. Although all
supplemented rats showed improvement,
those supplemented with blueberry
powder showed the most notable
improvement. 
 Examples

1. What is the independent variable?

Ans.: dietary supplement: none,

blueberry, strawberry, and
spinach
 Examples

2. What are the dependent variables?

Ans: memory test and motor skills

test 
 Variables

• Example 2:
Does beta-carotene protect against
cancer?
 Variables

• Beta-carotene supplements have been

thought to protect against cancer.
However, a study published in the Journal
of the National Cancer Institute suggests
this is false. The study was conducted with
39,000 women aged 45 and up.
 Variables

• These women were randomly assigned to

receive a beta-carotene supplement or
a placebo, and their health was studied
over their lifetime. Cancer rates for women
taking the beta-carotene supplement did
not differ systematically from the cancer
rates of those women taking the placebo. 
 Variables

1. What is the independent variable?

Ans.: supplements: beta-carotene or
placebo

2. What is the dependent variable?

Ans.: occurrence of cancer
 Variables

• Example 3:
How bright is right?
 Variables

• An automobile manufacturer wants to

know how bright brake lights should be in
order to minimize the time required for the
driver of a following car to realize that the
car in front is stopping and to hit the
brakes.
 Variables

1. What is the independent variable?

Ans.: brightness of brake lights

2. What is the dependent variable?

Ans.: time to hit the brakes
LEVELS OF DATA
MEASUREMENT
 LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
• ways to characterize data

• used for data when the mean, median,

and mode cannot be used
• example:
what is the mean of the favorite breaktime
acivities of students at SSC-R

mean of SSS numbers in the Philipppines

NOMINAL
 LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
1) Nominal
- simplest of the 4 ways to characterize
data

- nominal means “name only”

- deals with names, categories, or labels

LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
1) Nominal
 lowest level of data measurement
where the values for the variables
are used for identification only

 does not signify any numerical

value
 LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
• Nominal
- data that is classified into categories
and cannot be arranged in any
particular order

- examples are eye color, gender, and

religious affiliation
LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
1) Nominal
 data are qualitative:
color of the eyes, favorite breakfast
food, number at the back of a
basketball/volleyball jersey

 data at this level cannot be used to

calculate the mean, median, or the
standard deviation
 LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
1) Nominal
 to evaluate nominal data, numbers
are arbitrarily assigned to each
category
 example: marital status
single is “1”, married is
“2”, etc
LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
1) Nominal
 example: for marital status
single is given a value of“1”
married is “2”
widowed is “3”
separated is “4”
LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
1) Nominal
 calculations are done using the
values assigned to each category
ORDINAL
LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
2) Ordinal
- has all the characteristics of the
nominal scale
- the numbers obtained also give the
order of the values
- data can be ordered from highest to
lowest
LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
2) Ordinal
- differences between the data do not
have meaning
- examples: list of top 10 cities to live in
top 10 favorite TV shows

- cannot be used for calculations

LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
2) Ordinal
- used in variables that involve a
ranking process

- cannot be used for calculations, but,

values are assigned to proceed with
calculations
LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
2) Ordinal
- for example, if data involves positions
of authority in a company and values
are assigned to each:
 “1” for managers
 “2” for supervisors
 “3” for rank and file
INTERVAL
LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
3) Interval
- data can also be ordered

- differences between data has

significance or meaning

- has no starting point or zero point

LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
3) Interval
- examples: temperatures at the
Fahrenheit and Celsius scales
the Richter Scale
pH
LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
3) Interval
- there is a deeper significance to the
intervals that should be understood by
a researcher
- the intervals between values in
interval data are meaningful and
consistent
LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
3) Interval
- does not involve a true zero point

- examples: IQ scores of students

temperature

- calculations can be done on the data

RATIO
LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
• Ratio
- contains the richest information about an
object 
- gives a numerical value in the
relationships of values
- a zero point can be identified, i.e., there
is a clear definition of zero
LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
• Ratio
- calculations can be done including
multiplication and division
- together with the interval level, the ratio
level belong to the highest level of data
measurement
- this variable has all the properties of an
interval variable
LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
• Ratio
- examples are weight, height, dose
amount, temperature

- height is a ratio variable because the

intervals between the numbers are
comparable
LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT
• Ratio
- the ratio aspect has a meaningful
interpretation because a person who is 6
ft is twice as tall as a person who is 3 ft
- there is an absolute zero for height

- Ratio scales are interval scale that has a

true zero
WAYS OF CLASSIFYING DATA
 WAYS OF CLASSIFYIG DATA
• According to Nature
1) Quantitative or Numerical
- data are in the form of numbers

2) Qualitative or Categorical
- data are in the form of categories or
classifications
 WAYS OF CLASSIFYIG DATA
• According to Source
1) Primary
- first-hand information, e.g., from
survey
2) Secondary
- data from newspapers, magazines,
or journals
WAYS OF CLASSIFYIG DATA
• According to Arrangement
1) Ungrouped Data
- data without any particular order or
arrangement
2) Grouped Data
- tabulated data presented in an
organized manner
WAYS OF CLASSIFYIG DATA
• According to Measurement
1) Discrete Data
- data obtained from counting process
where data are whole numbers
2) Continuous Data
- data obtained through the measuring
process where data may be decimals
or fractions
SUMMARY OF DATA CLASSIFICATIONS
AND RELATIONSHIPS
Numerical
Data

Quantitativ
Qualitative e

Nominal Ordinal Interval Ratio

Discrete or
Discrete Continuous
• References:

1. Garcia, George A. (2003). Fundamental

Concepts and Methods in Statistics. España,
Manila: UST Publishing House.

2. Weiss, N. (2012). Introductory Statistics (9th Ed).

Boston, MA, USA: Pearson Education, Inc.
• References:

3. Johnson, R. R. , Kuby, P. J. . (2014) Statistics

(2nd Ed). Singapore: Cengage Learning.

4. Calaca, N. I., Uy, C., Noble, N. M., Manalo, R.

A. (2016). Statistics and Probability. Quezon
City: Vibal Group, Inc.
• Revisions:
1) June 18, 2016
2) November 17, 2019