The Statistical Imagination

Chapter 5. Measuring
Dispersion or Spread in a
Distribution of Scores

2008 McGraw-Hill

Measuring Dispersion in a
Score Distribution
Dispersion: How the scores of an
interval/ratio variable are spread out
from lowest to highest and the shape
of the distribution in between
The most commonly used dispersion
statistics are the range and standard
deviation
2008 McGraw-Hill

The Range
The range is an expression of
how the scores of an interval/ratio
variable are distributed from
lowest to highest
It is the distance between the
minimum and maximum scores in
a sample
2008 McGraw-Hill

Calculating the Range

1. Rank the scores from lowest to

highest
2. Identify the minimum and maximum
scores
3. Identify the value of the rounding unit
Range = (Maximum score - Minimum
score) + the value of the rounding unit
2008 McGraw-Hill

Limitations of the Range

The range is greatly affected by
outliers
The range has a narrow informational
scope. It provides the width of a
distribution of scores, but tells us
nothing about how they are spread
between the maximum and minimum
scores
2008 McGraw-Hill

The Standard Deviation

The standard deviation describes how scores
are spread across the distribution in relation
to the mean score
It provides a standard unit of comparison a
common unit of measure for comparing
variables with very different observed units of
measure
Its computation centers on how far each score
is from the mean how far it deviates
2008 McGraw-Hill

Calculating the Standard

Deviation
Sort givens and calculate the mean and
deviation scores
Sum the deviation scores and verify a result of
zero
Square the deviation scores and sum them to
obtain the variation or sum of squares
Divide the variation by n - 1 to get the
variance
Take the square root of the variance to get the
standard deviation
2008 McGraw-Hill

The Elements of the Standard

Deviation (See Table 5-1)
We square deviation scores to remove
negative signs and to obtain a sum other
than zero
We divide the sum of squares by n - 1 to
adjust for sample size and sampling error
We take the square root of the variance to
obtain directly interpretable units of
measure (units instead of squared units)
2008 McGraw-Hill

Limitations of the Standard

Deviation
The standard deviation is greatly
inflated by outliers
It can be misleading if the
distribution is skewed

2008 McGraw-Hill

Three Ways to Express the

Value of a Score, X
1. As a raw score the observed value

of X in its original units of measure

such as inches
2. As a deviation score the difference
between a raw score and its mean,
also in original units of measure
3. As a standardized score (Z-score)
as a number of standard deviations
(SD) from the mean
2008 McGraw-Hill

Standardized Scores or
Z-scores
Z-scores express a raw score as a
number of standard deviations
(SD) from the mean score
Divide the deviation score by the
standard deviation to produce a
measure of X in standard deviation
units
2008 McGraw-Hill

The Standard Deviation Is a

Part of the Normal Curve
For any normally distributed variable:
99.7% of cases fall within 3 SD of the
mean in both directions
About 95%, within 2 SD of the mean
in both directions
About 68%, within 1 SD of the mean
in both directions
2008 McGraw-Hill

Using the Normal Curve to

Partition Areas
If a variable is distributed normally, we
can use sample statistics and what
we know about the normal curve to
estimate how many scores in a
population fall within a certain range

2008 McGraw-Hill

Statistical Follies
Comparing the relative sizes of the
mean and standard deviation is a
good way to detect skews
When the calculated standard
deviation is larger than the mean
for the variable, the distribution is
skewed or otherwise oddly shaped
2008 McGraw-Hill