PSYB01H3 Chapter 10: Chapter 10 Notes 97-03.doc
Document Summary
Descriptive statistics (describe variables in a study) Inferential statistics (estimate characteristics of a population from random sample) Univariate distribution is a probability or frequency distribution of only one variable. Frequency distributions: shows number of cases and/or percentage of cases who receive each possible score on a variable, many frequency distributions and graphs require grouping of some values after the data are collected. Number of values may be too large to be displayed in an easily readable table. Distribution of variable will be clearer or more meaningful if some of the values are combined: when combined, there are guidelines. Categories should be logically defensible and preserve distribution"s shape. Categories should be mutually exclusive and exhaustive so that every case should be classifiable in one and only one category. Graphing: bar charts and histograms both have two axes and labels to identify variables and values. Bar chart: solid bars separated by spaces, good for showing nominal data.
