Lecture notes on Introduction to Statistics Chapter 2 METHODS OF

DATA PRESNTATION

CHAPTER 2

2. METHODS OF DATA PRESNTATION

Having collected and edited the data, the next important step is to organize it. That is to
present it in a readily comprehensible condensed form that aids in order to draw
inferences from it. It is also necessary that the like be separated from the unlike ones.

The presentation of data is broadly classified in to the following two categories:

 Tabular presentation
 Diagrammatic and Graphic presentation.

The process of arranging data in to classes or categories according to similarities

technically is called classification.

Classification is a preliminary and it prepares the ground for proper presentation of data.

Definitions:

 Raw data: recorded information in its original collected form, whether it is counts
or measurements, is referred to as raw data.
 Frequency: is the number of values in a specific class of the distribution.

 Frequency distribution: is the organization of raw data in table form using classes
and frequencies.

There are three basic types of frequency distributions

 Categorical frequency distribution

 Ungrouped frequency distribution

 Grouped frequency distribution

There are specific procedures for constructing each type.

1) Categorical frequency Distribution:

Used for data that can be place in specific categories such as nominal, or ordinal. e.g. marital
status.

Example: a social worker collected the following data on marital status for 25
persons.(M=married, S=single, W=widowed, D=divorced)

M S D W D

S S M M M

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Lecture notes on Introduction to Statistics Chapter 2 METHODS OF
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W D S M M

W D D S S

S W W D D

Solution:

Since the data are categorical, discrete classes can be used. There are four types of marital
status M, S, D, and W. These types will be used as class for the distribution. We follow
procedure to construct the frequency distribution.

Step 1: Make a table as shown.

Class Tally Frequency Percent

(1) (2) (3) (4)

Step 2: Tally D the data and place the result in

column (2).
W
Step 3: Count the tally and place the result in
column (3).

Step 4: Find the percentages of values in each class by using;

Where f= frequency of the class, n=total number of value.

Percentages are not normally a part of frequency distribution but they can be added since
they are used in certain types diagrammatic such as pie charts.

Step 5: Find the total for column (3) and (4).

Combing the entire steps one can construct the following frequency distribution.

Class Tally Frequency Percent

(1) (2) (3) (4)

M ///// 6 20

S //// // 7 Page 2 of 14 28
D //// // 7 28

W //// 5 24
Lecture notes on Introduction to Statistics Chapter 2 METHODS OF
DATA PRESNTATION

2) Ungrouped frequency Distribution:

-Is a table of all the potential raw score values that could possible occur in the data along
with the number of times each actually occurred.

-Is often constructed for small set or data on discrete variable.

Constructing ungrouped frequency distribution:

 First find the smallest and largest raw score in the collected data.
 Arrange the data in order of magnitude and count the frequency.

 To facilitate counting one may include a column of tallies.

Example:

The following data represent the mark of 20 students.

80 76 90 85 80
70 60 62 70 85
65 60 63 74 75
76 70 70 80 85

Construct a frequency distribution, which is ungrouped.

Solution:

Step 1: Find the range, Range=Max-Min=90-60=30.

Step 2: Make a table as shown
Step 3: Tally the data.
Step 4: Compute the frequency.
Mark Tally Frequency
60 // 2
62 / 1
63 / 1

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65 / 1
70 //// 4
74 / 1
75 // 2
76 / 1
80 /// 3
85 /// 3
90 / 1

Each individual value is presented separately, that is why it is named ungrouped

frequency distribution.

3) Grouped frequency Distribution:

-When the range of the data is large, the data must be grouped in to classes that are more than
one unit in width.

Definitions:

 Grouped Frequency Distribution: a frequency distribution when several numbers

are grouped in one class.
 Class limits: Separates one class in a grouped frequency distribution from another.
The limits could actually appear in the data and have gaps between the upper limits of
one class and lower limit of the next.

 Units of measurement (U): the distance between two possible consecutive measures.
It is usually taken as 1, 0.1, 0.01, 0.001, -----.

 Class boundaries: Separates one class in a grouped frequency distribution from

another. The boundaries have one more decimal places than the row data and
therefore do not appear in the data. There is no gap between the upper boundary of
one class and lower boundary of the next class. The lower class boundary is found by
subtracting U/2 from the corresponding lower class limit and the upper class
boundary is found by adding U/2 to the corresponding upper class limit.

 Class width: the difference between the upper and lower class boundaries of any
class. It is also the difference between the lower limits of any two consecutive classes
or the difference between any two consecutive class marks.

 Class mark (Mid points): it is the average of the lower and upper class limits or the
average of upper and lower class boundary.

 Cumulative frequency: is the number of observations less than/more than or equal to

a specific value.

 Cumulative frequency above: it is the total frequency of all values greater than or
equal to the lower class boundary of a given class.

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Lecture notes on Introduction to Statistics Chapter 2 METHODS OF
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 Cumulative frequency blow: it is the total frequency of all values less than or equal
to the upper class boundary of a given class.

 Cumulative Frequency Distribution (CFD): it is the tabular arrangement of class

interval together with their corresponding cumulative frequencies. It can be more than
or less than type, depending on the type of cumulative frequency used.

 Relative frequency (rf): it is the frequency divided by the total frequency.

 Relative cumulative frequency (rcf): it is the cumulative frequency divided by the

total frequency.

Guidelines for classes

1. There should be between 5 and 20 classes.

2. The classes must be mutually exclusive. This means that no data value can fall
into two different classes
3. The classes must be all inclusive or exhaustive. This means that all data values
must be included.
4. The classes must be continuous. There are no gaps in a frequency distribution.
5. The classes must be equal in width. The exception here is the first or last class. It
is possible to have an "below ..." or "... and above" class. This is often used with
ages.

Steps for constructing Grouped frequency Distribution

1. Find the largest and smallest values

2. Compute the Range(R) = Maximum - Minimum
3. Select the number of classes desired, usually between 5 and 20 or use Sturges rule
where k is number of classes desired and n is total number of
observation.
4. Find the class width by dividing the range by the number of classes and rounding
up, not off. .
5. Pick a suitable starting point less than or equal to the minimum value. The starting
point is called the lower limit of the first class. Continue to add the class width to
this lower limit to get the rest of the lower limits.
6. To find the upper limit of the first class, subtract U from the lower limit of the
second class. Then continue to add the class width to this upper limit to find the
rest of the upper limits.
7. Find the boundaries by subtracting U/2 units from the lower limits and adding U/2
units from the upper limits. The boundaries are also half-way between the upper
limit of one class and the lower limit of the next class. !may not be necessary to
find the boundaries.
8. Tally the data.
9. Find the frequencies.
10. Find the cumulative frequencies. Depending on what you're trying to accomplish,
it may not be necessary to find the cumulative frequencies.

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Lecture notes on Introduction to Statistics Chapter 2 METHODS OF
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11. If necessary, find the relative frequencies and/or relative cumulative frequencies

Example*:

Construct a frequency distribution for the following data.

11 29 6 33 14 31 22 27 19 20

18 17 22 38 23 21 26 34 39 27

Solutions:

Step 1: Find the highest and the lowest value H=39, L=6

Step 2: Find the range; R=H-L=39-6=33

Step 3: Select the number of classes desired using Sturges formula;

=1+3.32log (20) =5.32=6(rounding up)

Step 4: Find the class width; w=R/k=33/6=5.5=6 (rounding up)

Step 5: Select the starting point, let it be the minimum observation.

 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36 are the lower class limits.

Step 6: Find the upper class limit; e.g. the first upper class=12-U=12-1=11

 11, 17, 23, 29, 35, 41 are the upper class limits.

So combining step 5 and step 6, one can construct the following classes.

Class limits

6 – 11

12 – 17

18 – 23

24 – 29

30 – 35

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36 – 41

Step 7: Find the class boundaries;

E.g. for class 1 Lower class boundary=6-U/2=5.5

Upper class boundary =11+U/2=11.5

 Then continue adding w on both boundaries to obtain the rest boundaries. By

doing so one can obtain the following classes.

Class boundary

5.5 – 11.5

11.5 – 17.5

17.5 – 23.5

23.5 – 29.5

29.5 – 35.5

35.5 – 41.5

Step 8: tally the data.

Step 9: Write the numeric values for the tallies in the frequency column.

Step 10: Find cumulative frequency.

Step 11: Find relative frequency or/and relative cumulative frequency.

The complete frequency distribution follows:

Class Class boundary Class Tally Freq. Cf (less Cf (more rf. rcf (less
limit Mark than than type) than type
type)

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6 – 11 5.5 – 11.5 8.5 // 2 2 20 0.10 0.10

12 – 17 11.5 – 17.5 14.5 // 2 4 18 0.10 0.20

18 – 23 17.5 – 23.5 20.5 7 11 16 0.35 0.55

//////

24 – 29 23.5 – 29.5 26.5 //// 4 15 9 0.20 0.75

30 – 35 29.5 – 35.5 32.5 /// 3 18 5 0.15 0.90

36 – 41 35.5 – 41.5 38.5 // 2 20 2 0.10 1.00

Diagrammatic and Graphic presentation of data.

These are techniques for presenting data in visual displays using geometric and pictures.

Importance:

 They have greater attraction.

 They facilitate comparison.

 They are easily understandable.

-Diagrams are appropriate for presenting discrete data.

-The three most commonly used diagrammatic presentation for discrete as well as qualitative
data are:

 Pie charts
 Pictogram

 Bar charts

Pie chart

- A pie chart is a circle that is divided in to sections or wedges according to the

percentage of frequencies in each category of the distribution. The angle of the
sector is obtained using:

Example: Draw a suitable diagram to represent the following population in a town.

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Men Women Girls Boys

2500 2000 4000 1500

Solutions:

Step 1: Find the percentage.

Step 2: Find the number of degrees for each class.

Step 3: Using a protractor and compass, graph each section and write its name corresponding
percentage.

Class Frequency Percent Degree

Men 2500 25 90

Women 2000 20 72

Girls 4000 40 144

Boys 1500 15 54

Pictogram

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Lecture notes on Introduction to Statistics Chapter 2 METHODS OF
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-In these diagram, we represent data by means of some picture symbols. We decide
abut a suitable picture to represent a definite number of units in which the variable is
measured.

Example: draw a pictogram to represent the following population of a town.

Year 1989 1990 1991 1992

Population 2000 3000 5000 7000

Bar Charts:

- A set of bars (thick lines or narrow rectangles) representing some magnitude over
time space.
- They are useful for comparing aggregate over time space.
- Bars can be drawn either vertically or horizontally.
- There are different types of bar charts. The most common being :

 Simple bar chart

 Component or sub divided bar chart.
 Multiple bar charts.

Simple Bar Chart

-Are used to display data on one variable.

-They are thick lines (narrow rectangles) having the same breadth. The magnitude of a quantity
is represented by the height /length of the bar.
Example: The following data represent sale by product, 1957- 1959 of a given company for three
products A, B, C.

Product Sales($) Sales($) Sales($)

In 1957 In 1958 In 1959
A 12 14 18
B 24 21 18
C 24 35 54

Solutions:

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 Lecture notes on Introduction to Statistics Chapter 2 METHODS OF
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30
25
Sales in $

20
15
10
5
0
A B C
product

Component Bar chart

-When there is a desire to show how a total (or aggregate) is divided in to its component parts, we
use component bar chart.
-The bars represent total value of a variable with each total broken in to its component parts and
different colours or designs are used for identifications

Example:
Draw a component bar chart to represent the sales by product from 1957 to 1959.
Solutions:100

80
Product C
60
Sales in $

Product B
40
Product A
20

0
1957 1958 1959
Year of production

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 Lecture notes on Introduction to Statistics Chapter 2 METHODS OF
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Multiple Bar charts

- These are used to display data on more than one variable.

- They are used for comparing different variables at the same time.

Example:

Draw a component bar chart to represent the sales by product from 1957 to 1959.

Solutions:
60
50
40 Product A
Sales in $

30 Product B
20 Product C

10
0
1957 1958 1959
Year of production

Graphical Presentation of data

The histogram, frequency polygon and cumulative frequency graph or ogive are most
commonly applied graphical representations for continuous data.

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Procedures for constructing statistical graphs:

 Draw and label the X and Y axes.

 Choose a suitable scale for the frequencies or cumulative frequencies and label it on the
Y axes.
 Represent the class boundaries for the histogram or ogive or the mid points for the
frequency polygon on the X axes.
 Plot the points.
 Draw the bars or lines to connect the points.

Histogram

A graph which displays the data by using vertical bars of various height to represent
frequencies. Class boundaries are placed along the horizontal axes. Class marks and class limits
are some times used as quantity on the X axes.

Example: Construct a histogram to represent the previous data (example *).

Frequency Polygon:

-A line graph. The frequency is placed along the vertical axis and classes mid points
are placed along
8 the horizontal axis. It is customer to the next higher and lower
class interval with corresponding frequency of zero, this is to make it a complete
polygon.
Example: Draw a frequency polygon for the above data (example *).
Solutions: 6

4
Value Frequency

0
2.5 8.5 14.5 20.5 26.5 32.5 38.5 44.5

Class Mid points

Ogive (cumulative frequency polygon)

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- A graph showing the cumulative frequency (less than or more than type) plotted
against upper or lower class boundaries respectively. That is class boundaries are
plotted along the horizontal axis and the corresponding cumulative frequencies are
plotted along the vertical axis. The points are joined by a free hand curve.

Example: Draw an ogive curve(less than type) for the above data.(Example *)

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