Measures of dispersion

Slide 1
Measures of dispersion
■ Learning Objectives
• Calculate common measures of
dispersion from grouped and ungrouped
data (including the range, interquartile
range, mean deviation, and standard
deviation)
• Calculate and interpret the coefficient of
variation

Slide 2
What is measures of dispersion?
(Definition)
Central tendency measures do not
reveal the variability present in the
data.
Dispersion is the scatteredness of
the data series around it average.
Dispersion is the extent to which
values in a distribution differ from
the average of the distribution.
Slide 3
Why we need measures of dispersion?
(Significance)

⮚Determine the reliability of an

average
⮚Serve as a basis for the control of
the variability
⮚To compare the variability of two or
more series and
⮚Facilitate the use of other statistical
measures.
Slide 4
 Dispersion Example

■ X:Mean Time – 14.6 minutes

■ Y:Mean waiting time 14.6 minutes
■ What is the difference in the two
series?

X: High variability, Less consistency.

Y: Low variability, More Consistency
Slide 5
 Characteristics of an Ideal Measure of
Dispersion
1. It should be rigidly defined.
2. It should be easy to understand and easy to calculate.
3. It should be based on all the observations of the data.
4. It should be easily subjectedto further
mathematical treatment.
5. It should be least affected by the sampling fluctuation .
6. It should not be unduly affected by the extreme values.

Slide 6
 Measures of Dispersion

■ There are three main measures of dispersion:

– The range
– The Interquartile range (IQR)
– Variance / standard deviation

7
Slide 7
 Measures of
dispersion
■ Range
The range is defined as the difference between the largest
score in the set of data and the smallest score in the set of
data, XL - XS
• sensitive to extreme scores;
• compensate by calculating interquartile range (distance between
the 25th and 75th percentile points) which represents the range of
scores for the middle half of a distribution
Usually used in combination with other measures of dispersion.
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Slide 8
 Rang
e

Source: www.animatedsoftware.com/ statglos/sgrange.htm

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Slide 9
 Interquartile range

■ Measures the range of the middle 50% of the values only

■ Is defined as the difference between the upper and lower quartiles

Interquartile range = upper quartile - lower quartile

= Q3 - Q1

10
Slide 10
 The Semi-Interquartile Range

■ The semi-interquartile range (or SIR) is defined as the

difference of the first and third quartiles divided by
two
– The first quartile is the 25th percentile
– The third quartile is the 75th percentile
■ SIR = (Q3 - Q1) / 2

11
Slide
 SIR Example
■ What is the SIR for the
data to the right? 2
■ 25 % of the scores are 4 5 = 25th %tile

below 5 6
– 5 is the first quartile 8
■ 25 % of the scores are 10
above 25 12
– 25 is the third quartile 14
25 = 75th %tile
■ SIR = (Q3 - Q1) / 2 = 20
(25 - 5) / 2 = 10 30
60
Slide
1 2
 When To Use the SIR

■ The SIR is often used with skewed data as it is

insensitive to the extreme scores

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Slide 13
 The mean deviation

■ Measures the ‘average’ distance of each observation away from the

mean of the data

■ Gives an equal weight to each observation

■ Generally more sensitive than the range or interquartile range, since a

change in any value will affect it

Slide 14
 Actual and absolute deviations from
mean
A set of x values has a mean of x
■ The residual of a particular x-value is:
Residual or deviation = x- x
■ The absolute deviation is:

x-x

Slide 15
 Mean deviation

■ The mean of the absolute deviations

x x
Mean deviation
n

Slide 16
 To calculate mean deviation
1.Calculate mean of data Find

2.Subtract mean from each For each x, find

observation x x
Record the differences
3.Record absolute value of Find
each residual x x for each x

4.Calculate the mean of x x

Meandeviation
the absolute values n
Add up absolute values
and divide by n

Slide 17
 The standard deviation
■ Measures the variation of observations from
the mean
■ The most common measure of dispersion
■ Takes into account every observation
■ Measures the ‘average deviation’ of
observations from mean
■ Works with squares of residuals not absolute
values—easier to use in further calculations

Slide 18
 Standard deviation of a population δ

■ Every observation in the population is used.

2
(x x )
Standard deviation δ
n

■ The square of the population standard deviation is

called the variance.
Variance δ2

Slide 19
 Standard deviation of a sample s

■ In practice, most populations are very large and it is

more common to calculate the sample standard
deviation.
2
(x- x)
Standard deviation vδ=
n -1
■ Where: (n-1) is the number of observations in the
sample

Slide 20
To calculate standard deviation
1. Calculate the mean x
2. Calculate the residual for each x x
x
3. Square the residuals (x x)2

4. Calculate the sum of the

x x2
squares
5. Divide the sum in Step 4 by (n- x x2
1) n 1
6. Take the square root of x x2
quantity in Step 5 n 1

Slide 21
 Uses of Standard
deviation
■ Uses of the standard deviation

– The standard deviation enables us to determine,

with a great deal of accuracy, where the values of
a frequency distribution are located in relation to
the mean. We can do this according to a theorem
devised by the Russian mathematician
P.L. Chebyshev (1821-1894).

Slide 22
 Coefficient of variation

■ Is a measure of relative variability used to:

– measure changes that have occurred in a population over time
– compare variability of two populations that are expressed in different
units of measurement
– expressed as a percentage rather than in terms of the units of the
particular data

Slide 23
 Formula for coefficient of
variation
■ Denoted by V

s
V % 100
x

x
where = the mean of the sample
s = the standard deviation of the sample

Slide 24
 Summary

■ Measures of Dispersion
– no ideal measure of dispersion exists
■ standard deviation is the most important
measure of Dispersion.
• it is the most frequently used
• the value is affected by the value of every observation in the data
• extreme values in the population may distort the data

Slide 25
 REFERENCE
1. Mathematical Statistics- S.P Gupta
2. Statistics for management- Richard I.
Levin, David S. Rubin
3. Biostatistics A foundation for Analysis in the
Health Sciences.
■ Lecture by
■ Dr Zahid Khan
■ King Faisal University,KSA.
Slide 26