ABPR1103

Faculty of Applied Social Sciences
ABPR1103
Statistics for Psychology
Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

ABPR1103
STATISTICS FOR
PSYCHOLOGY
Tan Pei Jun
Dr Mahiswaran Selvanathan

Project Directors: Prof Dato’ Dr Mansor Fadzil
Assoc Prof Dr Mohd Yusuf Ahmad
Open University Malaysia
Module Writers: Tan Pei Jun

Dr Mahiswaran Selvanathan
Segi University
Moderators: Dr Wong Huey Siew

Assoc Prof Dr Fatimah Yusooff
Developed by: Centre for Instructional Design and Technology

First Edition, December 2016

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM), December 2016, ABPR1103
All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any form or by any means
without the written permission of the President, Open University Malaysia (OUM).

Table of Contents
Course Guide xi-xv
Topic 1 Introduction to Statistics 1

1.1 What is statistics? 2
1.2 Descriptive and Inferential Statistics 3
1.3 Variables, Values and Scores 5
1.4 Variables and Types of Data 6
Summary 12
Key Terms 13
References 14
Topic 2 Frequency Distributions and Graphs 15

2.1 Frequency Distribution 16
2.1.1 Steps in Constructing an Ungrouped Frequency 18
Distribution
2.1.2 Steps in Constructing a Categorical Frequency 20
Distribution
2.1.3 Steps in Constructing a Grouped Frequency 22
Distribution
2.2 Cumulative Frequency Distribution 26
Summary 29
Key Terms 29
References 30
Topic 3 Pictorial Presentation 31

3.1 Histograms, Frequency Polygons and Ogives 31
3.2 Histograms 34
3.3 The Frequency Polygon 35
3.4 The Cumulative Frequency Graph or Ogive 38
3.5 Relative Frequency Graphs 41
3.6 Bar Graphs 46
3.7 Pareto Charts 49
3.8 The Time Series Graph 51
3.9 The Pie Graph 52
3.10 Conclusions 56
Summary 59
Key Terms 60
References 61

iv  TABLE OF CONTENTS
Topic 4 Measures of Central Tendency 62

4.1 Central Tendency 63
4.2 The Mean 63
4.3 The Median 66
4.4 The Mode 68
4.5 Organisation 70
4.6 Percentiles 70
4.6.1 Percentiles Formula 70
4.7 Quartiles 72
4.8 Deciles 73
Summary 74
Key Terms 74
References 74
Topic 5 Measures of Dispersion or Variability 76

5.1 Variability 77
5.2 The Range 77
5.3 Interquartile Range 77
5.4 Variance 79
5.5 Standard Deviation 81
5.6 Variance and Standard Deviation of Ungrouped Data 82
5.7 Variance and Standard Deviation of Grouped Data 84
5.8 Uses of Variance and Standard Deviation 86
5.9 Skewness 87
Summary 88
Key Terms 88
References 89
Topic 6 The Normal Curve, Probability and Population 90

6.1 The Normal Curve 91
6.2 Probability 92
6.2.1 Computing Probability 93
6.2.2 Range of Probability 94
6.2.3 Symbols of Probability 94
6.3 Sample and Population 95
6.4 Is the Normal Curve Really Normal? 96
6.5 Research Articles 97
Summary 97
Key Terms 98
References 99

TABLE OF CONTENTS  v
Topic 7 Introduction to the t-Test 100

7.1 One Sample t-test 101
7.1.1 Basic Principle of t -test: Estimating the Population 101
Variance from the Sample Scores
7.1.2 Degrees of Freedom 102
7.1.3 Standard Deviation of the Distribution of Means 103
7.1.4 The t Distribution 104
7.1.5 The Cut-off Sample Score for Rejecting the Null 105
Hypothesis by Using t Table
7.1.6 The Sample MeanÊs Score on the Comparison 107
Distribution: The t Score
7.1.7 Null Hypothesis: To Reject or Not? 107
7.1.8 Summary of Hypothesis Testing When the 108
Population Variance is Unknown
7.2 The t-Test for Dependent Means 110
7.2.1 Steps for Computing t-test for Dependent Means 111
7.3 Assumptions of t-test 114
7.4 Effect Size 115
7.4.1 Calculating Effect Size 116
7.4.2 Effect Size Conventions 116
7.5 Statistical Power 117
7.5.1 Factors Affecting the Power of a Study 117
7.5.2 Planning Sample Size 117
7.6 Advantages and Disadvantages of Repeated-measures 119
Designs
7.7 t-test in Research Articles 120
Summary 121
Key Terms 122
References 123
Appendix A 124
Topic 8 Correlation 125

8.1 Graphing Correlations: The Scatterplot 127
8.1.1 Steps in Making Scatterplot 127
8.2 Patterns of Correlation 131
8.2.1 Linear and Curvilinear Correlations 131
8.2.2 No Correlation 133
8.2.3 Strength of Correlation 133
8.3 The Correlation Coefficient 135
8.3.1 The Pearson Correlation 135
8.3.2 The Sum of Products of Deviations 135
8.3.3 Calculation of the Pearson Correlation 137

vi  TABLE OF CONTENTS
8.3.4 Steps in Computing the Correlation Coefficient 137

8.3.5 Interpreting the Correlation Coefficient 139
8.4 Issues in Interpreting the Correlation Coefficient 141
8.4.1 The Correlation Coefficient and the Proportionate 142
Reduction in Error or Proportion of Variance
Accounted For
8.4.2 Correlation and Causation 142
8.4.3 Restriction in Range 142
8.4.4 Influence of Outliers 143
8.5 Controversy: What is a Large Correlation? 145
8.6 Correlation in Research Articles 146
Summary 148
Key Terms 149
References 150
Topic 9 Regression and Prediction 151

9.1 Predictor (X) and Criterion (Y) 152
9.2 The Regression Line 152
9.2.1 Equation for a Linear Relationship 152
9.2.2 Regression 153
9.2.3 Slope of the Regression Line 153
9.2.4 The Intercept of the Regression Line 153
9.3 Error and Proportionate Reduction in Error 154
9.3.1 The Least Squared Error Principle 154
9.3.2 Finding a and b for the Least Squares Linear 155
Prediction Rule
9.4 Prediction Using Z Scores 158
9.4.1 Raw Score Prediction Using the Z Score Prediction 158
Model (The Standardised Regression Coefficient)
9.4.2 Raw Score Prediction Using the Direct Raw Score 159
Prediction Model (The Unstandardised Regression
Coefficient)
9.5 Multiple Regression 160
9.5.1 Multiple Regression Prediction Rules 161
9.5.2 Multiple Regression vs. Bivariate Regression 162
9.6 Limitation of Regression (Prediction) 162
9.7 Controversy: Comparing Predictors 163
9.8 Prediction in Research Articles 164
Summary 165
Key Terms 166
References 167

TABLE OF CONTENTS  vii
Topic 10 Making Sense of Statistical Procedure 168

10.1 Brief Review of Multiple Regression 169
10.1.1 Stepwise Multiple Regression 170
10.1.2 Hierarchical Multiple Regression 171
10.2 Partial Correlation 172
10.3 Reliability 172
10.3.1 Test-retest Reliability 173
10.3.2 Split-half Reliability 173
10.3.3 CronbachÊs Alpha () 174
10.3.4 Inter-rater Reliability 175
10.4 Factor Analysis 176
10.5 Causal Modelling 178
10.5.1 Path Analysis 178
10.5.2 Mediational Analysis 180
10.5.3 Structural Equation Modelling 182
10.5.4 Limitations of Causal Modelling 185
10.6 Procedures that Compare Groups 185
10.7 Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) 186
10.8 Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) and 188
Multivariate Analysis of Covariance (MANCOVA)
10.9 Overview of Statistical Techniques 189
10.10 Controversy: Should Statistics be Controversial? 191
10.11 How to Read Results Using Unfamiliar Statistical 191
Techniques
Summary 192
Key Terms 194
References 194

viii  TABLE OF CONTENTS

COURSE GUIDE

COURSE GUIDE  xi
COURSE GUIDE DESCRIPTION

You must read this Course Guide carefully from the beginning to the end. It tells
you briefly what the course is about and how you can work your way through
the course material. It also suggests the amount of time you are likely to spend in
order to complete the course successfully. Please refer to the Course Guide as
you go through the course material as it will help you to clarify important study
components or points that you might miss or overlook.
INTRODUCTION
ABPR1103 Statistics for Psychology is one of the courses offered by the Faculty of
Applied Social Sciences at Open University Malaysia (OUM). This course is
worth 3 credit hours and should be covered over 8 to 15 weeks.
COURSE AUDIENCE
This course is offered to all learners taking the Bachelor of Psychology with
programme.
As an open and distance learner, you should be acquainted with learning

independently and being able to optimise the learning modes and environment
available to you. Before you begin this course, please ensure that you have the
right course material, and understand the course requirements as well as how the
course is conducted.
STUDY SCHEDULE
It is a standard OUM practice that learners accumulate 40 study hours for every
credit hour. As such, for a three-credit hour course, you are expected to spend
120 study hours. Table 1 gives an estimation of how the 120 study hours could be
accumulated.

xii  COURSE GUIDE
Table 1: Estimation of Time Accumulation of Study Hours
Study
Study Activities
Hours
Briefly go through the course content and participate in initial discussions 2
Study the module 60
Attend 3 to 5 tutorial sessions 8
Online participation 12
Revision 18
Assignment(s), Test(s) and Examination(s) 20
TOTAL STUDY HOURS ACCUMULATED 120
COURSE OUTCOMES
By the end of this course, you should be able to:
1. Explain the descriptive statistics concept;
2. Discuss the concepts of probability and the distribution;
3. Explain the basic knowledge of inferential statistics; and
4. Recognise statistical procedure in the field of psychology.
COURSE SYNOPSIS
This course is divided into 10 topics. The synopsis for each topic can be listed as
follows:
Topic 1 gives an overview of statistics. Basic terms in statistics will be defined.

We will also discuss the different types of data that we would come across in
statistics.
Topic 2 discusses tabular presentation. You will learn how to organise,

summarise and represent your data in a meaningful form.
Topic 3 focuses on pictorial presentation. We will discuss various ways of

presenting data in pictorial form.

COURSE GUIDE  xiii
Topic 4 shows the next step of statistical method ă summarise data. We will
discuss the measures of central tendency, which include the mean, mode and
median in statistics. It also discusses organising data by using quartiles, deciles
and percentiles.
Topic 5 discusses measures of dispersion or variability. We will discuss the

range, inter-quartile range, variance and standard deviation as a way of
explaining distinctions between populations.
Topic 6 explains the normal distribution or normal curve. It also shows us the
way to compute probability, and discusses sample and population.
Topic 7 introduces the basic hypothesis-testing procedure, known as the t-test. It

explains different types of t-test with general t-test assumptions. It also discusses
the effect size and power in t-test, together with the controversy in using t-test.
Topic 8 introduces correlation. It shows us the way to draw and interpret

scatterplot. It also explains correlation through correlation patterns, calculation,
and interpretation.
Topic 9 discusses prediction. It focuses on regression analysis and discusses

different types of regression. It also discusses the controversies and limitations of
regression.
Topic 10 gives us an overview of advance statistical procedures, which include

stepwise and hierarchical multiple regression, partial correlation, factor analysis,
causal modelling, analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), multivariate analysis of
variance (MANOVA), and multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA). It
also discusses the different types of reliability and variables in research.
TEXT ARRANGEMENT GUIDE

Before you go through this module, it is important that you note the text
arrangement. Understanding the text arrangement will help you to organise your
study of this course in a more objective and effective way. Generally, the text
arrangement for each topic is as follows:
Learning Outcomes: This section refers to what you should achieve after you
have completely covered a topic. As you go through each topic, you should
frequently refer to these learning outcomes. By doing this, you can continuously
gauge your understanding of the topic.

xiv  COURSE GUIDE
Self-Check: This component of the module is inserted at strategic locations

throughout the module. It may be inserted after one sub-section or a few sub-
sections. It usually comes in the form of a question. When you come across this
component, try to reflect on what you have already learnt thus far. By attempting
to answer the question, you should be able to gauge how well you have
understood the sub-section(s). Most of the time, the answers to the questions can
be found directly from the module itself.
Activity: Like Self-Check, the Activity component is also placed at various

locations or junctures throughout the module. This component may require you
to solve questions, explore short case studies, or conduct an observation or
research. It may even require you to evaluate a given scenario. When you come
across an Activity, you should try to reflect on what you have gathered from the
module and apply it to real situations. You should, at the same time, engage
yourself in higher order thinking where you might be required to analyse,
synthesise and evaluate instead of only having to recall and define.
Summary: You will find this component at the end of each topic. This component
helps you to recap the whole topic. By going through the summary, you should
be able to gauge your knowledge retention level. Should you find points in the
summary that you do not fully understand, it would be a good idea for you to
revisit the details in the module.
Key Terms: This component can be found at the end of each topic. You should go
through this component to remind yourself of important terms or jargon used
throughout the module. Should you find terms here that you are not able to
explain, you should look for the terms in the module.
References: The References section is where a list of relevant and useful

textbooks, journals, articles, electronic contents or sources can be found. The list
can appear in a few locations such as in the Course Guide (at the References
section), at the end of every topic or at the back of the module. You are
encouraged to read or refer to the suggested sources to obtain the additional
information needed and to enhance your overall understanding of the course.
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
No prior knowledge required.

COURSE GUIDE  xv
ASSESSMENT METHOD
Please refer to myINSPIRE.
REFERENCES
Aron, A., Aron, E. N., & Coups, E. J. (2009). Statistics for Psychology (5th ed.).
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Mohd Kidin Shahran. (2007). Introduction To Statistics (SBST1103). OUM

Publication.
Urdan, T. C., & Urdan, T. C. (2005). Statistics in Plain English. Lawrence Erlbaum
Associates, Inc.
Mohd Kidin Shahran. (2007). Pengenalan Ujian Hipotesis (SBST2103). OUM

Publication.
TAN SRI DR ABDULLAH SANUSI (TSDAS) DIGITAL

LIBRARY
The TSDAS Digital Library has a wide range of print and online resources for the
use of its learners. This comprehensive digital library, which is accessible
through the OUM portal, provides access to more than 30 online databases
comprising e-journals, e-theses, e-books and more. Examples of databases
available are EBSCOhost, ProQuest, SpringerLink, Books24x7, InfoSci Books,
Emerald Management Plus and Ebrary Electronic Books. As an OUM learner,
you are encouraged to make full use of the resources available through this
library.

xvi  COURSE GUIDE

Topic  Introduction
1 to Statistics
LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of this topic, you should be able to:
1. Demonstrate knowledge of statistical terms;
2. Differentiate the two branches of statistics;
3. Identify the types of data; and
4. Identify the measurement level for each variable.
 INTRODUCTION
Many learners take psychology degrees because they are interested in or curious
about peopleÊs behaviours. However, not many learners know that they have to
study research methods and statistics in detail, which seem scary for learners
who dislike or are poor in mathematics.
In reality, psychologistsÊ works are based heavily on statistics, which helps to

make sense of the information collected. For example, how many people do not
dare to take a flight? How many students sleep less than five hours? As you get
the vast amount of data, how do you organise and interpret these data? These
questions can be answered through statistics. So, let us look at the definition of
statistics and its functions in the field of psychology.

2  TOPIC 1 INTRODUCTION TO STATISTICS
ACTIVITY 1.1
How is psychology, which looks into peopleÊs behaviour, related to

statistics? When can a psychologist say that his/her information is
significant?
Post your answer to the above question in the myINSPIRE forum and
respond to some of the postings by your coursemates.
1.1 WHAT IS STATISTICS?

According to Aron, Aron and Coups (2009), statistics is defined as,
A branch of mathematics that focuses on the organisation, analysis and

interpretation of a group of numbers.
In psychology, we are aware that our observations of the world can never be
totally accurate but have a certain level of uncertainty. With statistical thinking, it
allows us to accept and estimate levels of uncertainties (Steele, Andrews, &
Upton, 2012). In other words, statistics enables us to:
(a) Summarise various information that we have collected. It helps to organise

and describe the information collected as clearly and accurately through
tables and diagrams (Howitt & Cramer, 2011). This branch of statistics is
known as descriptive statistics; and
(b) Make inferences based on the data collected, which is another branch of
statistics called inferential statistics. Through inferential statistics, we can
confidently generalise a sample to the entire population (Howitt & Cramer,
2011). We can make predictions from the data collected using inferential
statistics.

TOPIC 1 INTRODUCTION TO STATISTICS  3
Let us take an example shown in Figure 1.1.
Figure 1.1: What is statistics?
The first example is a summary of data. The second example makes a prediction
of what will happen in the future.
SELF-CHECK 1.1
1. Why is statistics so important in studying psychology?
2. Define statistics and the differences between descriptive and

inferential statistics with examples.
1.2 DESCRIPTIVE AND INFERENTIAL

STATISTICS
In research, data is collected to describe a situation. Data refers to the
„measurements or observations that the variables can assume‰ (Bluman, 2013).
When data is collected, it can be called the data set. Data sets can be analysed
differently by the researcher.
Statistics can be divided into two main branches as shown in Figure 1.2.

Figure 1.2: Two main branches of statistics
Now, see what Bulman (2013) says about the population and sample.
Population consists of all subjects (human or otherwise) that are being studied.
Sample is a group of subjects selected from a population.
Briefly, a researcher uses descriptive statistics to describe the situation based on

the information collected. On the other hand, the researcher uses inferential
statistics to draw conclusions, and to make inferences according to the numbers
collected in a research, but which transcend the numbers (Aron et al., 2009).

SELF-CHECK 1.2
Read the following study and answer the questions.
A study conducted in Toronto, Ontario, Canada revealed that men and

women in higher-status occupations reported higher levels of work-to-
home conflict than workers in lower-status jobs. Higher levels of job
demands, involvement, and hours among individuals in higher-status
occupations contribute significantly to occupation-based differences in
work-to-home conflict. Results generally support the „stress of higher
status‰ hypothesis among both women and men.
(Source: Schieman, Whitestone& Van Gundy, 2006)
(a) What are the variables of this study?
(b) What are the data in this study?
(c) What types of statistics is/are used in this study?
(d) What is the population of the study?
(e) Was a sample collected? If so, from where?
1.3 VARIABLES, VALUES AND SCORES

In the first few topics, we will focus on descriptive statistics while introducing
you to some basic concepts in statistics. Let us start with imagining that you, as a
manager, are going to give a questionnaire to your subordinates. One of the
questions asked was, „How stressed were you in the past two weeks? Please rate
yourself on a scale of 0 to 10, with 0 being not stressed at all, and 10 being
extremely stressed‰. In this study, you are inspecting your subordinatesÊ stress
levels by using a survey questionnaire.
Looking at this example, the variable is the stress level, which has values from 0
to 10. The score is the value of your subordinateÊs answer. If your subordinate
answered 7, his score is 7; his score of 7 has a value of 7 on the variable called
„level of stress‰ (Aron et al., 2009).
A variable is a condition or characteristic that can have different values (Aron et

al., 2009). In brief, it is anything that varies and is measurable. Examples of
variables are gender, social class, types of mental disorders, number of people
late to work, car models and so on.
Psychology research is about variables, values and scores (Aron et al., 2009),
which can be summarised in Table 1.1.
Table 1.1: Basic Terminology
Term Definition Examples

Variable Condition or characteristic that can Stress level, age, gender, religion
have different values
Value Number or categories 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 50, 89, 100, female, Catholic
Score A particular personÊs value on the 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 50, 89, 100, female, Catholic
variable
Source: Aron et al., 2009
1.4 VARIABLES AND TYPES OF DATA

In research, there are different types of variables. Variables can be categorised as
qualitative or quantitative (Bulman, 2013). First of all, qualitative variables are
variables that are categorised according to different characteristics or attributes
(Bulman, 2013). Referring to the example above, gender or occupation can be the
qualitative variable, if it is comparing the stress levels between male and female,
or even occupations.
Apart from that, the survey questionnaire involves a rating of 0 to 10. The higher
the rating the more stress your subordinate experiences. This variable is known
as a numeric variable. As the name numeric states, it is a variable whose values
are numbers, which is also termed quantitative variable (Aron et al., 2009).
Quantitative variables can be further divided into two groups, discrete and
continuous (Bulman, 2013). Discrete variable is one that has a finite number or
countable number that cannot have values in between (Aron et al., 2009).
Examples of discrete variables are number of books you read, number of
employees in an organisation, number of cars you own, number of travels you
made last year and so on. On the other hand, continuous variables are defined as
variables with infinite number of values between any two values (Aron et al.,
2009). Common continuous variables are height, weight, time and temperature.
For instance, one may report his/her height as 169.3cm and weight 59.7kg.
However, due to the limitation of measuring device, the variables need to be
rounded up (such as 169cm) or put into a category (such as 168.5cm to 169.5cm)
during measuring (Bulman, 2013).

As stated by Bulman (2013), variables can be classified by how they are

categorised, counted and measured. For instance, when a person is carrying out a
survey, he needs to think of how he would like to measure or test the hypotheses.
Can ethnicity be categorised? Can some data, such as income of participants be
ranked? This type of classification ă how variables are categorised, counted or
measured ă uses measurement scales (Bulman, 2013).
There are four common types of scales, discussed as follows:
(a) Nominal (or Categorisation) Measurement
(i) Nominal variable is not a numeric variable, but its values stand for
names or categories (Aron et al., 2009).
(ii) The nominal level of measurement classifies data into named

categories that has no ordering scheme (Triola, 2010).
(iii) For example, for the nominal variable gender, the values are female
and male. Another example is occupation, which has values, such as,
blue-collar worker, white-collar worker, professional, unemployed
and student.
(iv) Classifying cars according to the brand (e.g., Proton, Perodua, Toyota,
Honda, Mercedes Benz, Peugeot, etc.) is also an example of nominal
level of measurement (see Figure 1.3).
(v) Besides that, survey responses of „yes‰, „no‰, and „not sure‰, as well
as, resident zip codes which numbers have no meaningful order or
ranking, are also examples of nominal level measurement.
Figure 1.3: Nominal measurement

Source: https://asahjayaphoto.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/compact-cars.jpg

(b) Rank-order (or Ordinal) Measurement
(i) Ordinal variable is one of the numeric variables in which the numbers
signify relative ranking (Aron et al., 2009). In other words, the scores
are placed in order and ranked from smallest to largest.
(ii) Data that are measured at this level can be arranged or placed into
categories with some order or ranks. However, the differences
between data values cannot be determined or are meaningless (Triola,
2010, p. 14). As stated by Bulman (2013), there is no precise
measurement of differences in this level of measurement.
(iii) One of the examples would be universityÊs results ranking (see Figure
1.4). Students are ranked with first, second upper, second lower and
third class honours. Students who are ranked with first class honours
do not know how many marks they were behind or ahead of other
students in the same rank or a different rank.
Figure 1.4: Rank-order measurement

Source: http://www.iu.qs.com/product/201415-qs-world-
university-rankings-result-tables-excel-format/

(c) Equal-interval (or Interval) Measurement
(i) Interval variable is also a numeric variable, where the intervals

between the numbers on a numerical scale are same in size (Howitt &
Cramer, 2011).
(ii) Data measured in this level are ranked data. There are precise
differences between data values.
(iii) For example, when we measure height on a scale of meters, the

difference in height between 1.5m and 1.6m is the same as the
difference between 1.6m and 1.7m, or between 23.3m and 23.4m (see
Figure 1.5). Each has a difference of 0.1m of height.
(iv) Nevertheless, there is no meaningful zero in this measurement. For

instance, temperature of 0°C does not mean no heat at all.
Figure 1.5: Equal-interval measurement

Source: http://www.drogariaraicar.com/_/rsrc/1383477495704/home/
home/resources/height-weight-chart/height%26weightchart.gif

(d) Ratio Measurement
(i) When the variable has an absolute 0 point that indicates complete
absence of the variable, the interval variable will be measured on a
ratio scale (Aron et al., 2009). Figure 1.6 shows the F1 Brazillian GP
First Practice Classification .
(ii) This level of measurement holds all the characteristics of interval

measurement, but there is a true zero in this measurement (Bulman,
2013).
(iii) For example, numbers of alcoholic beverages a person drank in the

past week is measured on a ratio scale, as 0 means that he or she did
not drink any alcoholic beverage in the past week. Similar to equal
interval measurement, you can say that a person who drank 6 cans of
beer had twice as many cans as a person who drank 3 cans of beer.
Figure 1.6: Ratio measurement

Table 1.2 shows the summary of the measurement levels.
Table 1.2: Summary of Measurement Levels
Level Descriptions Examples

Ratio There is a natural zero starting point and ratios are Distances, prices
meaningful.
Interval Differences are meaningful, but there is no natural Temperatures, IQ

zero starting point and ratios are meaningless. score
Ordinal Categories are ordered, but differences cannot be Exam grade, class
found or are meaningless. grade ranking, ranks
of universities
Nominal Categories only. Data cannot be arranged in an Eye colours, gender,

ordering scheme. religion, nationality
Source: Triola, 2010
Looking at these different kinds of variables, researchers are to decide the types
of measurement that they want to use to measure their variables. „The level of
measurement selected affects the type of statistics that can be used with a
variable‰ (Aron et al., 2009, p. 5).

SELF-CHECK 1.3
Read the following information and answer the questions.
Transportation Accidents Statistics
The chart shows the number of vehicle occupants killed in the year 2013
in the United States.
Transportation Number of Killed Persons

Passenger car 1,308,000
Light Truck 759,000
Large Truck 25,000
Bus 23,000
Motorcycle 93,000
Source: Data from United States Department of Transportation, 2014
(a) What are the variables under the study?
(b) Categorise each variable as quantitative or qualitative.
(c) Categorise each quantitative variable as discrete or continuous.
(d) Identify the level of measurement for each variable.
(e) From the information given, comment on the relationship between

the variables.
 Researchers use descriptive statistics to describe and summarise a group of

numbers from a research.
 A value is a number or category; a variable is a characteristic that can have

different values; a score is a particular personÊs value on the variable.
 Data are values (measurements or observations) that the variables can

assume.

 Descriptive statistics consists of the collection, organisation, summarisation,

and presentation of data.
 Inferential statistics consists of generalising from samples to populations,

performing estimations and hypothesis tests, determining relationships
among variables, and making predictions.
 Population consists of all subjects (human or otherwise) that are being

studied.
 Sample is a group of subjects selected from a population.
 Most variables in psychology research are numeric with approximately equal

intervals. However, some numeric variables are rank-ordered (the values are
ranks), and some variables are not numeric at all (the values are categories).
Data Qualitative variables

Descriptive statistics Quantitative variables
Discrete variables Ratio level of measurement
Inferential statistics Sample
Interval level of measurement Score
Measurement scales Statistics
Nominal level of measurement Value
Ordinal level of measurement Variable
Population

Aron, A., Aron, E. N., & Coups, E. J. (2009). Statistics for psychology (5th ed.).
Bluman, A. G. (2013). Elementary statistics: A brief version (6th ed.). New York,
NY: McGraw-Hill.
Howitt, D., & Cramer, D. (2011). Introduction to statistics in psychology (5th ed.).
Harlow, England: Pearson.
Schieman, S., Whitestone, Y. K., & Van Gundy, K. (2006). The nature of work
and the stress of higher status. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 47(3),
242-257. doi:10.1177/002214650604700304
Steele, C., Andrews, H., & Upton, D. (2012). Statistics in psychology. Harlow,
England: Prentice Hall/Pearson.
Triola, M. F. (2010). Elementary statistics (11th ed.). Boston: Addison-Wesley.
U.S. Department of Transportation. (2014). Traffic safety facts 2013. Retrieved

from http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/812139.pdf

Topic  Frequency
2 Distributions
and Graphs
LEARNING OUTCOMES
1. Describe frequency distribution;
2. Organise data using a frequency distribution;
3. Construct a frequency distribution; and
4. Study a frequency distribution.
 INTRODUCTION
In the previous topic, you learned the operational definition of statistics, as well
as some basic terms used in statistics. As you read along, you may find yourself
knowing more about statistics than you think. Similar to what we always see in
articles, newspapers, websites and magazines, results are presented in tables,
graphs or pie charts.
As stated in the previous topic, when one is conducting a research using

statistical methods, one needs to collect data, organise and summarise the
collected data. In order to give meaning to data, reach conclusions or make
predictions about events, the researcher must arrange the data (Bluman, 2013).
Frequency distribution is the most convenient and helpful table in organising the
data (Triola, 2010).
After organising the data, the researcher must present it in a way that is easily
understood (Bluman, 2013). This can be done by creating statistical charts and
graphs. As stated by Bluman (2013), there are various types of charts and graphs

16  TOPIC 2 FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTIONS AND GRAPHS
with different functions. In this topic, you will learn how to organise, summarise
and represent your data in a meaningful form.
ACTIVITY 2.1
In class or at work, record the mobile telephone brands that they have.
Present the data to your coursemates by using your own methods. After
that, compare your method with the methods that you learned
throughout this topic.
2.1 FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTION

Consider a researcher who wanted to study the stress level of working mothers
in the Klang Valley area. The researcher then obtained from a simple random
sample of 40 working mothers the results listed in Table 2.1. As these data are in
original form, they are known as raw data (Bluman, 2013).
Table 2.1: Stress Levels of Working Mothers
8 7 8 7
7 4 9 7
8 5 9 6
3 8 7 8
9 10 3 9
4 8 6 9
3 6 5 7
0 7 9 5
5 7 1 6
2 6 2 8
With the raw data, a researcher may organise it into a frequency distribution.
According to Bluman (2013), frequency distribution (or frequency table) is
defined as the organisation of raw data in table form, using categories (or classes)
and frequencies. The frequency of a class is the total amount of a specific value in
a particular category. In other words, a frequency table shows how many times
each class occurs (Aron, Aron, & Coups, 2009). An example of frequency
distribution for the above data set is shown in Table 2.2.

TOPIC 2 FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTIONS AND GRAPHS  17
Table 2.2: Frequency Distribution of Working MothersÊ Stress Levels
Stress
(a) Frequency (b) Stress Level Frequency
Level
0 1 0-2 Low 4
1 1 3-5 Moderate 8
2 2 6-8 High 21
3 3 9-10 Extremely High 7
4 1
5 4
6 5
7 9
8 7
9 6
10 1
With this frequency table, one may get some general information from the data.
For example, it can be said that the majority of working mothers in the study has
high levels of stress (or stress level of 7).
Looking at Table 2.2 (a), the classes in the distribution are 0, 1, 2, 3, ⁄ 10, whereas
the classes in Table 2.2 (b) are 0-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-10. These values are known as
class limits (Bluman, 2013). The data values 0, 1, 2 can be placed in the first class,
3, 4, 5 in the second class, and so on.
SELF-CHECK 2.1
1. What is a frequency distribution?
2. What is the purpose of constructing a frequency distribution?

2.1.1 Steps in Constructing an Ungrouped Frequency

Distribution
Technology nowadays has helped and saved lots of time in organising the data,
such as letting us generate frequency distributions automatically (Triola, 2013).
Nevertheless, we still need to understand the steps in constructing frequency
distribution manually.
Examples 1 to 3 show three different types of frequency distributions. Example 1

is the ordinary or ungrouped frequency distribution that lists all the possible
values in the variable. This type of frequency distribution is often used when the
data values range is comparatively small (Bluman, 2013).
Example 1
Stress Levels of Working Mothers
8 7 8 7
7 4 9 7
8 5 9 6
3 8 7 8
9 10 3 9
4 8 6 9
3 6 5 7
0 7 9 5
5 7 1 6
2 6 2 8
Step 1: From the collected data, list down each of the possible values, from
lowest to highest.
For example, referring to the Table 2.1 and 2.2, we assume that ratings
of the stress level range from 0-10. With this, the lowest value of the
stress level is 0, which is the lowest possible value, and 10 is the highest
possible value. All possible values need to be listed down even though
one of the values is not used. Any value that is not used can be
represented with a frequency of 0. For instance, if no one rated a stress
level of 3, value „3‰ still need to be included in the frequency table and
0 will be recorded as its frequency.

Step 2: Go through all the scores, draw a mark for each next to its value on the
list as showed in Figure 2.1.
Figure 2.1: Making a frequency table
Step 3: Draw a table showing how many times each value on the list is used to
get the frequency and sum up the numbers of marks beside the value as
demonstrated in Table 2.3.
Step 4: Calculate the percentage of scores for each value as indicated in Table
2.3.
To calculate the percentage, take the frequency for the value, divide it
by the total frequency and multiply by 100.
f
%=  100
n
f = frequency of the stress level
n = total numbers of values

For example, for level 3 of stress, the percentage is,
3
%=  100  7.5%
40
Sometimes, the percentage needs to be rounded up. It is recommended

by Aron et al. (2009) that you round the percentages to one decimal
place. At the same time, because of the rounding, the percentages may
not add up exactly to 100%. Nevertheless, it should be close.
Table 2.3: Frequency Table of Number of Working

Mothers Rating Each Value of the Stress Level
Stress Level Tally Frequency Percent

0 | 1 2.5
1 | 1 2.5
2 || 2 5.0
3 ||| 3 7.5
4 | 1 2.5
5 |||| 4 10.0
6 |||| 5 12.5
7 |||| |||| 9 22.5
8 |||| || 7 17.5
9 |||| | 6 15.0
10 | 1 2.5
Total 40 100.0
2.1.2 Steps in Constructing a Categorical Frequency

Distribution
Example 2 shows an example of the categorical frequency distribution.
Categorical frequency distribution is used for data that can be classified into
specific categories, such as nominal- or ordinal-level data (Bluman, 2013). As
stated in Topic 1, nominal- or ordinal-level data are occupations, gender, religion,
exam grade rank, etc.

Example 2
Distribution of Temperaments
Choleric Sanguine Sanguine Phlegmatic Melancholy

Melancholy Melancholy Sanguine Phlegmatic Sanguine
Sanguine Sanguine Melancholy Choleric Melancholy
Choleric Melancholy Melancholy Melancholy Phlegmatic
Phlegmatic Choleric Melancholy Sanguine Choleric
Referring to Example 2, as this is a categorical data, categorical frequency

distribution will be constructed. The steps are as follows:
Step 1: Determine the classes.
Step 2: Draw a table to fit in all the classes as Table 2.4.
Table 2.4: Classes in Categorical Frequency Distribution
Class Tally Frequency Percent

Choleric
Sanguine
Melancholy
Phlegmatic
Step 3: Mark the data and place the results in the „Tally‰ column.
Step 4: Total up the tallies and place the results in the „Frequency‰ column.
Step 5: Calculate the percentage of each class and place the results in the
„Percent‰ column.
5
Choleric % =  100  20%
25

Step 6: Find the totals for „frequency‰ and „percent‰.
Table 2.5: Categorical Frequency Distribution
Class Tally Frequency Percent

Choleric |||| 5 20
Sanguine |||| || 7 28
Melancholy |||| |||| 9 36
Phlegmatic |||| 4 16
Total 25 100
2.1.3 Steps in Constructing a Grouped Frequency

Distribution
When the possible values are very large, it is hard to present them in the
ordinary frequency table. Thus, you may group or divide the values into a certain
range, that is, more than one unit in width. These values are combined into a
category known as an interval. A frequency table that uses intervals is known as
a grouped frequency distribution (Aron et al., 2009). Example 3 indicates a
grouped frequency distribution.
Example 3
GraduatesÊ Ages in Applied Social Science Disciplines in OUM Year 2015
33 24 34 30 36 34 28 44 40 26
26 29 27 42 29 36 33 36 31 34
47 30 32 25 50 35 32 29 37 35
30 31 28 37 24 42 38 28 30 33
28 29 33 65 35 27 29 34 59 27
Step 1: Determine the classes.
Find the range by subtracting the lowest value from the highest value.
R = highest value ă lowest value

So, the range of graduatesÊ ages in Applied Social Science Disciplines in

OUM Year 2015 is,
R = 65 ă 24 = 41
Select the number of classes desired (usually between 5 and 20). In this
example, 8 is arbitrarily chosen.
Calculate the class width by dividing the range by the number of

classes.
R
Width =
number of classes
So, the class width is,
41
Width =  5.86
7
Round the answer up to the nearest whole number if there is a

remainder:
5.86  6.
Rounding up is different from rounding off. A number is rounded

up if there is any decimal remainder when dividing. For example, 85
 6 = 14.167 will be rounded up to 15; 53  4 = 13.25 will be rounded
up to 14.
In addition, after dividing, if there is no remainder, you will need to

add an extra class to accommodate all the data.
Select a starting point for the lowest class limit. This can be the smallest
data value or any convenient number less than the smallest data value.
In this case, 24 is used. Add the width to the lowest score taken as the
starting point to get the lower limit of the next class. Keep adding until
there are 7 classes, as shown in Table 2.6.

Subtract one unit from the lower limit of the second class to get the
upper limit of the first class. Then add the width to each upper limit to
get all the upper limits.
The upper limit of the first class is,
30 ă 1 = 29
The first class is 24-29, the second class is 30-35, etc.
Find the class boundaries by subtracting 0.5 from each lower class limit
and adding 0.5 to each upper class limit as follows:
23.5-29.5, 29.5-35.5, etc.
Step 2: Tally the data.
Step 3: Find the numerical frequencies from the tallies, as shown in Table 2.6.
Table 2.6: Grouped Frequency Distribution
Class Limits Class Boundaries Tally Frequency

24 ă 29 23.5-29.5 |||| |||| |||| || 17
30 ă 35 29.5-35.5 |||| |||| |||| |||| 19
36 ă 41 35.5-41.5 |||| || 7
42 ă 47 41.5-47.5 |||| 4
48 ă 53 47.5-53.5 | 1
54 ă 59 53.5-59.5 | 1
60 ă 65 59.5-65.5 | 1
n   f  50
The frequency distribution shows that the class 29.5-35.5 contains the
largest number of graduates, followed by the class 23.5-29.5 with 17
graduates. Hence, most of the graduates (19) fall between 29.5 and 35.5
years old.

SELF-CHECK 2.2
Suppose you have conducted a survey about numbers of children the

employees have in a company. Your data collected are as follows:
Gender Age Race Numbers of Children

M 37 C 3
M 35 C 2
F 34 M 4
M 36 I 4
F 33 C 2
F 32 C 1
M 30 M 1
F 29 I 1
M 39 C 3
F 37 M 5
F 31 C 1
F 35 I 3
M 38 M 4
F 36 M 3
M 35 I 2
M 34 M 1
M 31 I 1
F 28 M 2
F 28 C 2
F 33 I 2
(a) State the level of measurement for the following variables:
(ii) Gender
(iii) Age
(iiii) Race
(iiv) Numbers of children
(b) Construct frequency tables for race and numbers of children.
(c) What are the proportions of the 20 employees having 1 child, 2

children, 3 children, 4 children and 5 children? Calculate the
percentage for each category.

2.2 CUMULATIVE FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTION

There will be times when use of a cumulative frequency distribution is not only
advantageous, but required. A cumulative frequency distribution shows the
number of data values less than or equal to a specific value. The summary of
values of the frequency of the classes less than or equal to the upper class
boundary of a specific class (Bluman, 2013), is as shown in Table 2.7.
Refer back to Example 3, the cumulative frequency for,
(a) The first class is 0 + 2 = 2;
(b) The second class it is 0 + 2 + 8 = 10; and
(c) The third class it is 0 + 2 + 8 + 18 = 28.
Naturally, a shorter way to do this would be to just add the cumulative

frequency of the class below to the frequency of the given class. For instance, the
cumulative frequency for the number of data values less than 11.45 can be found
by adding 10 + 18 = 28. The cumulative frequency distribution for the data in this
example is in Table 2.7:
Table 2.7: Cumulative Frequency Table for GraduatesÊ

Age in Applied Social Science Disciplines in OUM Year 2015
Number of Data Cumulative Frequency
Less than 23.5 0
Less than 29.5 0 + 17 = 17
Less than 35.5 17 + 19 = 36
Less than 41.5 36 + 7 = 43
Less than 47.5 43 + 4 = 47
Less than 53.5 47 + 1 = 48
Less than 59.5 48 + 1 = 49
Less than 65.5 49 + 1 = 50

Cumulative frequencies are used to show how many data values are
accumulated up to and including a specific class. In Example 3, a total of 36
graduates are below 36 years old. 49 of the total graduates are 59 years old and
below.
Apart from the four frequency distributions mentioned earlier, there is also
relative frequency distribution. In this frequency distribution, relative frequency
(a proportion) or a percentage frequency (a percent) replaces the classÊs
frequency (Triola, 2010). The calculation of relative frequencies is demonstrated
in the Figure 2.2.
Figure 2.2: Relative frequencies calculation
Table 2.8 shows the relative frequency distribution of number of cars in a family.
Table 2.8: Relative Frequency Distribution of Number of Cars in a Family
Number of Cars Frequency Relative Frequency

0 5 5.6%
1 18 20.2%
2 31 34.8%
3 24 27.0%
4 9 10.1%
5 2 2.2%
>5 0 0%
In Table 2.8, the first class has a relative frequency of 5  89 (5 + 18 + 31 + 24 + 9 +

2 + 0) = 5.6%. If created correctly, the total of the relative frequencies should be
100%. Since there will be rounding errors, some discrepancies are allowed.
(Triola, 2010).
After the organisation of the raw data into a frequency distribution, one can then
analyse the data by looking for extreme values or what are call peaks. These
extreme scores show which class or classes have the most data values when
comparing the different classes (Bluman, 2013).

To summarise, there are few advantages to construct a frequency distribution

(Bluman, 2013). Data can be organised in a meaningful and understandable way.
It further simplifies the computational process for the measures of central
tendency which will be discussed in Topic 4. After that, a researcher may present
the data with charts or graphs by referring to the frequency distribution. With a
clear presentation, the reader understands without difficulty, which further
allows the comparison of different data sets (Bluman, 2013).
ACTIVITY 2.2
Create a table listing the watch brands that you can recall now. Then,
add in a column „do not know any of the brand‰ at the end of your
table. Subsequently, survey your coursemates to find out the watch
brands that each of your coursemates is aware of. Record the results
and construct a frequency table for your data.
SELF-CHECK 2.3
1. Identify the four types of frequency distributions and explain

when each should be used.
2. The data below shows the number of railway passengers (in

thousands) for the main rail transport in 2012 in Malaysia. Use the
data to construct a grouped frequency distribution and a
cumulative frequency distribution with a reasonable number of
classes.
90,577 83,466 82,534 71,878 47,903

59,387 39,877 27,057 18,621 17,309
14,290 13,628 13,556 12,928 11,254
10,511 10,209 9,034 8,071 7,836
6,703 6,512 5,897 5,682 5,311

 Frequency distribution is the organisation of raw data in table form, using

categories and frequencies.
 Ordinary or ungrouped frequency distribution is often used when the data

values range is comparatively small.
 A categorical frequency distribution is used for data that can be classified into
specific categories, such as nominal- or ordinal-level data.
 A grouped frequency distribution is used when the possible number of

values is very large that is hard to present in the ordinary frequency table.
 A cumulative frequency distribution shows the number of data values less

than or equal to a specific value.
 In relative frequency distribution, relative frequency (a proportion) or a

percentage frequency (a percent) replaces the classÊs frequency.
Categorical frequency distribution Frequency

Class Frequency distribution
Class limit Grouped frequency distribution
Cumulative frequency Relative frequency distribution
Cumulative frequency distribution Ungrouped frequency distribution

NY: McGraw-Hill.
Cocoris, J. T. (2014). Description of the 4 primary temperaments. Retrieved

February 21, 2016 from http://fourtemperaments.com/Description.htm.

Topic  Pictorial
3 Presentation
LEARNING OUTCOMES
1. Construct a histogram, frequency polygon or ogive to show the
distribution of data;
2. Construct graphs of data using a bar graph, Pareto chart, time series
graph and pie graph; and
3. Interpret the results shown in histograms and graphs accurately.
 INTRODUCTION
In the Topic 2, we had looked into the frequency distribution. It is the first data
organisation after data collection. Other than presenting them in table form, we
can also present the data in pictorial form, such as, charts, polygons, graphs and
so on. In this topic, you will learn pictorial presentation.
3.1 HISTOGRAMS, FREQUENCY POLYGONS

AND OGIVES
As you have sorted out your data and arranged it into frequency distribution,
how would you present or display the data so that lay people can understand the
data easily? You can describe the data in pictorial or graphical form (Bluman,
2013), which is frequently seen in newspaper and magazines. They can be shown
in charts, graphs, polygons and so on.

32  TOPIC 3 PICTORIAL PRESENTATION
In statistics, graphs are used to illustrate and analyse the data (Bluman, 2013).
According to Bluman (2013), most lay people can understand the data showed in
pictorial form better compared to the data shown in tables. Graph presentations
are said to be more attractive to people as well. In addition, people also use
statistical graphs to note the trend of a situation or an issue over a duration,
discuss it and summarise it from the data presented (Bluman, 2013).
In the following, we will look at the most common graphs that are used in
research: histogram, frequency polygon, and cumulative frequency graph or
ogive (pronounced „o-jive‰). You may see the example for each graph in Figure
3.1(a) to Figure 3.1(c).
Figure 3.1(a): Histogram for exercise motivations

TOPIC 3 PICTORIAL PRESENTATION  33
Figure 3.1(b): Frequency polygon for exercise motivations
Figure 3.1(c): Cumulative frequency graph for exercise motivations

3.2 HISTOGRAMS
Histogram is defined as a graph made up of contiguous equal width vertical bars
(without gap). The horizontal scale indicates the classes of the data while the
vertical scale indicates the frequencies of the classes. The heights of the vertical
bars depend on the frequency values (Triola, 2010).
Steps in Constructing a Histogram

Now, let us see the steps in constructing a histogram. Table 3.1 shows the
distribution of phone applications downloaded among young adults. Based on
these data we will construct the histogram.
Table 3.1: Distribution of Phone Applications Downloaded among Young Adults
Class Limits Class Boundaries Frequency

1-5 0-5.5 6
6-10 5.5-10.5 17
11-15 10.5-15.5 29
16-20 15.5-20.5 23
21-25 20.5-25.5 8
25-30 25.5-30.5 2
Here are the steps to construct the histogram:
Step 1: Draw the x axis and y axis. Label the horizontal axis as x axis and
vertical axis as y axis.
Step 2: Determine a suitable scale for the frequencies.
Step 3: Write down the frequency values on the y axis and the class boundaries
on the x axis.
Step 4: Draw the vertical bars for each class by referring to the frequencies on
the y axis as the heights.
As the histogram in Figure 3.2 shows, the class with the greatest number of data
values (29) is 10.5-15.5 downloaded phone applications, followed by 23 for 15.5-
20.5 downloaded phone applications. The graph also has one peak with the data
clustering around it.

Figure 3.2: Histogram for number of phone applications downloaded
ACTIVITY 3.1
In class, each student record his or her time for holding their breaths.
Construct a frequency distribution and histogram for the times of both
males and females. Compare the results.
3.3 THE FREQUENCY POLYGON

Besides histogram, you may also use frequency polygon to describe your data.
Unlike histogram, frequency polygon does not use bars but use lines to represent
the data. As stated by Bluman (2013), frequency polygon is defined as a graph
that uses lines segments that connect the points marked for the frequencies above
the class midpoint values to present the data.
Steps in Constructing a Frequency Polygon

Now, let us see the steps in constructing a frequency polygon. Table 3.2 shows
the studentsÊ heights in Class X. Based on these data we will construct the
frequency polygon.

Table 3.2: StudentsÊ Heights in Class X
Class Boundaries Frequency

120 ă 130 2
130 ă 140 5
140 ă 150 16
150 ă 160 24
160 ă 170 31
170 ă 180 19
180 ă 190 3
Following are the steps to construct the frequency polygon:
Step 1: Calculate the midpoints for each class by using the formula:
Upper boundaries + lower boundaries 120  130

  125
2 2
Class Boundaries Midpoints Frequency
120  130
120 ă 130  125 2
2
130 ă 140 135 5
140 ă 150 145 16
150 ă 160 155 24
160 ă 170 165 31
170 ă 180 175 19
180 ă 190 185 3
Step 2: Draw the x and y axes. Write down the midpoint of each class.
Determine a suitable scale for the frequencies and then write down the
frequency values on the y axis.
Step 3: Mark the points by referring to the midpoints for the x values and the
frequencies as the y values.

Step 4: Use line segments to connect the adjoining points (see Figure 3.3). Start
the line from the beginning of the graph on x axis (i.e., the origin ă the
intersection of x axis and y axis), and end the line on x axis with the
same width between midpoints.
Figure 3.3: Frequency polygon for studentsÊ heights
ACTIVITY 3.2
You have now just learned about histogram and frequency polygon.
Have you given thought of which of these graphs is better suited to
represent data or easier for people to understand the data? In statistics,
it is the researcherÊs choice to use what graph(s) to present their data
(Bluman, 2013). In class, discuss with your tutor and coursemates,
which graph is best to use for describing which types of data.

3.4 THE CUMULATIVE FREQUENCY GRAPH OR

OGIVE
Another type of graph that is frequently used is the cumulative frequency graph,
which is also known as ogive. This kind of graph uses cumulative frequencies
instead of frequencies. As you recall, the cumulative frequency refers to the
frequencies built up to the upper boundary of a class in the distribution (Bluman,
2013).
Steps in Constructing an Ogive

Let us see the steps in constructing an ogive. We will use the same data in
Subtopic 3.3 (see Table 3.3). Based on this data we will construct the ogive.
Table 3.3: StudentsÊ Heights in Class X

120 ă 130 2
130 ă 140 5
140 ă 150 16
150 ă 160 24
160 ă 170 31
170 ă 180 19
180 ă 190 3
Here are the steps in constructing the ogive.
Step 1: Calculate the cumulative frequency for each class.
Class Cumulative Frequency

Less than 120 0
Less than 130 2
Less than 140 7
Less than 150 23
Less than 160 47
Less than 170 78
Less than 180 97
Less than 190 100

Step 2: Draw the x and y axes. Mark and label the x axis with the class
boundaries. Determine a suitable scale for the cumulative frequencies,
and then write it down on the y axis. In this example, a scale of 0, 10, 20,
30, 40, ⁄ will be used.
Step 3: Mark the cumulative frequency at each upper class boundary, as shown
in Figure 3.4. Upper boundaries are used since the cumulative
frequencies represent the number of data values accumulated up to the
upper boundary of each class.
Step 4: Use line segments to connect the adjoining points. Starting the line with
the lower boundary, 120, connect the adjoining points with line
segments, as shown in Figure 3.4.
Figure 3.4: Ogive for studentsÊ height in class X

As stated by Triola (2010), ogives are advantageous when you want to find out
the number of values that are below some particular values. For instance, if you
would like to find out how many students are shorter than 160cm, locate 160 on
the x axis, draw a vertical line up until it intersects the graph, and then draw a
horizontal line at that point to the y axis. The y axis value is 47 (Bluman, 2013), as
shown in Figure 3.5.
Figure 3.5: Ogive for studentsÊ heights in class X
Table 3.4 summarises the steps for drawing histogram, frequency polygons, and
ogives.

Table 3.4: Procedure Table
Constructing Statistical Graphs

Step 1 Draw and label the x and y axes.
Step 2 Choose a suitable scale for the frequencies or cumulative frequencies and
label it on the y axis.
Step 3 Represent the class boundaries for the histogram or ogive or the midpoint for
the frequency polygon, on the x axis.
Step 4 Plot the points and then draw the bars or lines.
Source: Bluman, 2013
3.5 RELATIVE FREQUENCY GRAPHS

Earlier, we had learned histogram, frequency polygon and ogive. Another type
of graph that can be used to represent the data sets is relative frequency graph.
This graph is similar to histogram. The difference is that relative frequency graph
uses proportions or relative frequencies (percentages of the whole) instead of
frequencies. In other words, the graph shows proportions on axis y instead of
frequency (raw data) (Bluman, 2013).
Relative frequency graph is especially useful when there are large data sets or
when a researcher wants to see how often something happens (Andale, 2016). It
evaluates various classes against the whole. As stated by Bluman (2013), relative
frequency graph is used when the proportions of data values that fall into a given
class is more important than the actual number of data values that fall into that
class. For example, if a researcher wanted to compare the auto market production
in the world in 2014, the researcher may choose to use the relative frequency
graph. The reason is that there is a huge disparity between the countries in the
world, for instance, China produced 23,722,890 vehicles while Ukraine produced
28,751 vehicles (International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers,
2016).
To calculate the relative frequencies (such as proportions or percentages), take

each frequency and divide by the total frequency. The total of the relative
frequencies will always equal 1.

Steps in Constructing a Relative Frequency Graph

Let us see the steps in constructing a relative frequency graph. Table 3.5 shows
kilometres driven per week.
Table 3.5: Kilometres Driven per Week

0 - 10.5 2
10.5 - 20.5 4
20.5 - 30.5 6
30.5 - 40.5 11
40.5 - 50.5 14
50.5 - 60.5 33
60.5 - 70.5 30
70.5 - 80.5 27
80.5 - 90.5 18
90.5 - 100.5 5
Total 150
Step 1: Calculate the relative frequency for each class by using the formula:
Class frequency
Frequency total
Class Boundaries Frequency Relative Frequency
2
0 - 10.5 2  0.01
150
4
10.5 - 20.5 4  0.03
150
6
20.5 - 30.5 6  0.04
150
11
30.5 - 40.5 11  0.07
150
14
40.5 - 50.5 14  0.09
150

33
50.5 - 60.5 33  0.22
150
30
60.5 - 70.5 30  0.20
150
27
70.5 - 80.5 27  0.18
150
18
80.5 - 90.5 18  0.12
150
5
90.5 - 100.5 5s  0.03
150
150 0.99
Step 2: Write down the values in the relative frequency column.
Class Boundaries Frequency Relative Frequency

0 - 10.5 2 0.01
10.5 - 20.5 4 0.03
20.5 - 30.5 6 0.04
30.5 - 40.5 11 0.07
40.5 - 50.5 14 0.09
50.5 - 60.5 33 0.22
60.5 - 70.5 30 0.20
70.5 - 80.5 27 0.18
80.5 - 90.5 18 0.12
90.5 - 100.5 5 0.03
150 0.99
Step 3: Draw the x and y axes. Mark and label the x axis with the class
boundaries. Determine a suitable scale for the relative frequencies and
then write it down on the y axis.

Step 4: For histogram, draw the vertical bars for each class by referring to the
relative frequencies on y axis as the heights, as shown in Figure 3.6.
Figure 3.6: Relative frequency histogram for kilometres driven per week
For frequency polygon, you will need to write down the midpoint of
each class before marking and connecting the points, as shown in Figure
3.7. The midpoints of each class are shown in Table 3.6.
Table 3.6: Midpoints of Each Class for Kilometre Driven per Week
Class Boundaries Midpoints Relative Frequency

0 - 10.5 5.5 0.01
10.5 - 20.5 15.5 0.03
20.5 - 30.5 25.5 0.04
30.5 - 40.5 35.5 0.07
40.5 - 50.5 45.5 0.09
50.5 - 60.5 55.5 0.22
60.5 - 70.5 65.5 0.20
70.5 - 80.5 75.5 0.18
80.5 - 90.5 85.5 0.12
90.5 - 100.5 95.5 0.03
0.99

Figure 3.7: Relative frequency polygon for kilometres driven per week
For cumulative relative frequency, add the frequency in each class to the total
frequency of the previous class. You may also find the cumulative frequencies
first and then convert each one to a relative frequency (see Table 3.7). Figure 3.8
shows the graph of cumulative relative frequency for kilometres driven per
week.
Table 3.7: Cumulative Relative Frequency and Relative Frequency
Class Boundaries Relative Frequency Cumulative Relative Frequency

0 - 10.5 0.01 0.01
10.5 - 20.5 0.03 0.04
20.5 - 30.5 0.04 0.08
30.5 - 40.5 0.07 0.15
40.5 - 50.5 0.09 0.24
50.5 - 60.5 0.22 0.46
60.5 - 70.5 0.20 0.66
70.5 - 80.5 0.18 0.84
80.5 - 90.5 0.12 0.96
90.5 - 100.5 0.03 0.99

Figure 3.8: Cumulative relative frequency for kilometres driven per week
SELF-CHECK 3.1
1. Compare and contrast regular histogram with relative frequency

graph.
2. When is it more advantageous to use relative frequency

distribution compared to frequency distribution? Give examples.
3.6 BAR GRAPHS

In addition to the histogram, the frequency polygon and the ogive, there are
several other types of graphs often used in statistics. They are the bar graph,
Pareto chart, time series graph and pie graph (Bluman, 2013).
We always see bar graphs on newspapers, magazines and books. As stated by

NC State University (2005), bar graphs are one of the ordinary types of graph that
is best fitted for qualitative or categorical research.

A bar graph uses bars with equal width that may or may not be separated by
small gaps, to indicate the frequencies of the qualitative or categorical data
(Triola, 2010). Bar graphs can be drawn horizontally or vertically (Bluman, 2013).
Steps in Constructing a Bar Graph

Now, let us see the steps in constructing a bar graph. Table 3.8 shows the average
money spent during Chinese New Year. Based on this data we will construct the
bar graph.
Table 3.8: Average Money Spent during Chinese New Year (CNY)
RM
Gift for parents 2,000
CNY decorations and fireworks 1,500
Gifts for friends and relatives 500
Red packet (Ang Pao) money 1,000
Clothes shopping 1,300
Transportation fees 350
Reunion dinner 1,200
Following are the steps in constructing a bar graph.
Step 2: Decide your bar graph orientation. If you would like to draw a
horizontal bar graph, locate the frequency scale on the x axis. On the
other hand, if you would like to draw a vertical bar graph, then locate
the frequency scale on the y axis.
Step 3: Label the graph with details (for example, frequency values, classes).
Step 4: Draw the bars for each class by referring to the frequencies on x axis or
y axis (see Figure 3.9(a) & (b)).

Figure 3.9(a): Horizontal bar graph for money spent during Chinese New Year
Figure 3.9(b): Vertical bar graph for money spent during Chinese New Year

ACTIVITY 3.3
Recall your expenses for the previous month and construct a bar graph
for them.
3.7 PARETO CHARTS

A Pareto chart is a kind of bar graph used for qualitative or categorical data
(Triola, 2010). According to Triola (2010), Pareto chart is advantageous when a
researcher is trying to draw the readersÊ attention to the categories that are more
important. The reason is that the frequencies of the data is arranged in
descending order (such as from highest to lowest), from left to right, in a Pareto
chart.
Steps in Constructing a Pareto Chart

Now we will learn how to construct a Pareto chart. Table 3.9 shows the parentsÊ
occupations for students in XYZ International School.
Table 3.9: ParentsÊ Occupations for Students in XYZ International School
Job Area Number

Management 243
Office/administrative support 376
Architecture/engineering 117
Art and design 125
Legal occupations 37
Education 283
Healthcare practitioner 87
Others 92
Source: Washington State University (n.d)

Following are the steps to construct the Pareto chart.
Step 1: Order the data by placing the category with largest count first and
lowest at the bottom.
Job Area Number

Office/administrative support 376
Education 283
Management 243
Art and design 125
Architecture/engineering 117
Others 92
Healthcare practitioner 87
Legal occupations 37
Step 2: Draw the axis x and axis y. Label the horizontal axis as x axis and
Step 3: Draw the bars for each class by referring to the frequencies on y axis
(see Figure 3.10).
Figure 3.10: Pareto chart for parentsÊ occupations

for students in XYZ International School
3.8 THE TIME SERIES GRAPH

One can use a time series graph to organise and then present data if the data are
collected over a long period of time (Bluman, 2013).
Steps in Constructing a Time Series Graph

Now, let us see the steps in constructing a time series graph. Table 3.10 shows the
turnout rates in company Z for the years 2008 to 2015.
Table 3.10: Turnout Rates in Company Z for the Year 2008 to 2015
Year Ê08 Ê09 Ê10 Ê11 Ê12 Ê13 Ê14 Ê15

Number 12 9 5 4 8 7 3 6
The steps to construct the time series graph are as follows:
Step 2: Label the x axis for years and the y axis for the number.
Step 3: Mark the points according to the table.
Step 4: Draw line segments to connect adjacent points. Do not attempt to fit a
smooth curve through the data points (see Figure 3.11).
Figure 3.11: Time series graph for turnout rates in company Z for the years 2008 to 2015

Time series graph is useful when a researcher wants to see the pattern or trend
for something. As Bluman (2013) stated, the researcher may observe the trend or
pattern of the time series graph, as an ascending line indicates an increase while a
descending line indicates a decrease over that period. In addition, the researcher
may also look at the steepness of the line, as a steeper line indicates faster
increase or decrease.
With time series graph, the researcher may also compare two or more sets of data
on the same graph (Bluman, 2013). This graph is known as compound time series
graph. As shown in Figure 3.12, the numbers of employees increased gradually
from 2008 to 2015 for both males and females.
Figure 3.12: Compound time series graph for employees in company X
3.9 THE PIE GRAPH

„A pie graph is a circle that is divided into sections or wedges according to the
percentage of frequencies in each category of the distribution‰ (Bluman, 2013, p.
73), just like you are slicing the pie into pieces. Pie chart represents the qualitative
or categorical data as slices of a circle, and the size of each slice describes its
frequency or percentage for the category (Triola, 2010).
Steps in Constructing a Pie Graph

Now, let us see the steps in a pie graph. Table 3.11 shows Malaysians working in
foreign countries.

Table 3.11: Malaysians Working in Foreign Countries
Country Numbers
Australia 120,000
Brunei 90,000
USA 80,000
Britain 80,000
Canada 30,000
Singapore 460,000
Source: Soong (2012)
Following are the steps to construct the pie graph.
Step 1: A circle has 360À. To find the proportional part of the circle for each
class, the frequency has to be converted by using the formula:
f
Degrees =  360À
n
Where f = frequency for each class and n = sum of the frequencies. The
total degrees should sum to 360À.*
120000
Australia  360À = 50.2À
860000
90000
Brunei  360À = 37.7À
860000
80000
USA  360À = 33.5À
860000
80000
Britain  360À = 33.5À
860000
30000
Canada  360À = 12.6À
860000
460000
Singapore  360À = 192.6À
860000
Total 360.1Àssss

Step 2: Convert the frequency to a percentage by using the formula:
f
%=  100
n
Similarly, the percentages should sum to 100% as well.†
120000
Australia  100 = 13.9%
860000
90000
Brunei  100 = 10.5%
860000
80000
USA  100 = 9.3%
860000
80000
Britain  100 = 9.3%
860000
30000
Canada  100 = 3.5%
860000
460000
Singapore  100 = 53.5%
860000
Total 100%
Step 3: Next, use a protractor and a compass to draw the graph using the
appropriate degree measures found in Step 1, and label each section
with the name and percentages, as shown in Figure 3.13.
*Note: The degrees column does not always sum to 360Ĉ due to rounding.
†Note: The percent column does not always sum to 100% due to rounding.

Figure 3.13: Pie chart for Malaysians Working in Foreign Countries
SELF-CHECK 3.2
Construct a pie graph using the data below.
Planted Area (Hectare) in Estates by State in year 2010.
States Planted Area (Hectare)

Kelantan and Terengganu 19,325
Kedah and Perlis 27,241
Johor 13,970
Selangor and Sabah 5,704
Perak 7,683
Pahang 17,462
Negeri Sembilan 22,468
Melaka 2,561

ACTIVITY 3.4
In your class, do a survey and record the numbers of siblings that each
of your coursemate has. After that, create a frequency table and
construct different types of graphs covered in this topic, that you think
is suitable to represent your data sets.
3.10 CONCLUSIONS
Graphs make data easier to be analysed and interpreted with visual aids. Lay
people can easily understand by looking at the numbers. Nevertheless, if one
drew a graph inappropriately, it will lead to a false conclusion (Bluman, 2013).
For example, a brand A skin product advertisement stated that 98% of the
customers showed improvement in their skin condition after using their product.
The advertisement then showed a graph similar to the one in Figure 3.14. The
graph shows the percentage of the customers who see improvement in their skin
condition after using their product and the percentage of its competitors. From
Figure 3.14, it seems to have a large difference. In fact, there is not much
difference.
If you pay attention to the graph, you will notice that the scale on axis y in Figure
3.14 has been cut off and starts at 90%. Now when you look at Figure 3.15 that is
redrawn using a scale that goes from 0 to 100%, the difference is hardly noticed.
In short, changing the units at the starting point on the y axis can convey a
different visual representation of the data (Bluman, 2013).

Figure 3.14: Graph of brand A improvement claim using a scale from 95 to 100%
Figure 3.15: Redrawn graph using a scale from 0 to 100%
In addition, the second most common types of bad graph are pictographs with
the drawings of objects (Triola, 2010). The reason is that the drawer can create
false impressions that mislead the reader. For example, Figure 3.16 shows the
number of people who own different pets. It seems that people own pet dogs
more than any other pets. This picture is misleading because the pictures are
drawn with different sizes. By looking at Figure 3.17 that is redrawn with same
size pictures aligned with one another, it is clear that most people own pet fish.

Therefore, pictographs using areas or volumes can be very misleading as well

(Triola, 2010).
Figure 3.16: Pictograph for people who own pets

Figure 3.17: Pictograph redrawn with same size
 Histogram is a graph made up of contiguous equal width vertical bars

(without gap).
 Frequency polygon is a graph that uses lines segments that connect the points
marked for the frequencies above the class midpoint values, to present the
data.
 Cumulative frequency graph or ogive is advantageous when you want to

find out the number of values that are below some particular value.

 Relative frequency graph uses proportions or relative frequency instead of

frequencies. It is used when the proportion of data values that fall into a
given class is more important than the actual number of data values that fall
into that class.
 A bar graph uses bars with equal width that may or may not be separated by
small gaps, to indicate the frequencies of the qualitative or categorical data.
 A Pareto chart is a kind of bar graph used for qualitative or categorical data.
It is advantageous when the researcher is trying to draw the readersÊ
attention to the categories that are more important.
 When data are collected over an extended period of time, they can be
represented by a time series graph.
 A pie graph is a circle that is divided into sections or wedges according to the
percentage of frequencies in each category of the distribution.
 Inappropriately drawn graph will lead to a false conclusion.
Bar graphs Ogives

Cumulative frequency graph Pareto charts
Frequency Percentage
Frequency distribution Pie graphs
Frequency polygons Proportion
Graphs Relative frequency
Histograms Time series graphs

Andale. (2016). Relative frequency histogram: Definition and how to make one.
Retrieved from http://www.statisticshowto.com/relative-frequency-
histogram-2/
Barbara, S. D. (n.d.). Sampling and data: Frequency, relative frequency, and

cumulative frequency. Retrieved from https://cnx.org/contents/jsYjzeoo
@20/Sampling-and-Data-Frequency-Re
NY: McGraw-Hill.
Heymann, E. (2011). ASEAN auto market: Growing in the shadow of China and
India. Retrieved from www.dbresearch.com
International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers. (2016). 2014

production statistics. Retrieved from http://www.oica.net/category/
production-statistics/2014-statistics/
NC State University. (2005). Graphing resources: Bar graphs. Retrieved from

https://www.ncsu.edu/labwrite/res/gh/gh-bargraph.html
Soong, S. H. (2012). Some statistics on Malaysians working in overseas countries

in OIC; Commonwealth; BRICS; PIIGS; UN. Retrieved from http://www.
chinesechamber.org.my/html/themes/chinesechamber/images/content/b
ulletin342/Some%20Statistics%20on%20Malaysians%20Working%20in%20
Overseas%20Countries%20in%20OIC;%20Commonwealth;%20BRICS;%20P
IIGS;%20UN.pdf
Washington State University. (n.d.). Occupation categories. Retrieved from

http://ir.wsu.edu/File/Occupation+Categories+Definitions.pdf
Remarks
The steps in constructing graphs and tables are universal elements of the
statistics. They are written with reference to Bluman (2013).

Topic  Measures of
4 Central
Tendency
LEARNING OUTCOMES
1. Use statistical techniques to describe scores with numbers;
2. Describe a representational or typical value;
3. Identify measures of central tendency from large groups of data;
4. Apply the mean, median and mode; and
5. Organise data by using quartiles, deciles and percentiles.
 INTRODUCTION
The previous topics revealed how you can organise raw information into
frequency distribution, and present the data by using a variety of pictorial
presentations or graphs. This topic shows the next step of statistical method ă
summarizing data. According to Bluman (2013), the most common statistical
methods to find the averages are called measures of central tendency. These
measures describe typical or representative scores. Although measures of central
tendency convey only part of the meaning of a set of scores or numbers, the
information regarding the center of distribution is important. The mean, median
and mode are used to reflect different notions of the center of a distribution. Each
can also be used over the other when attempting to give meaning to different
types of data. These measures are used in research, as well as, for describing data
to the public.

TOPIC 4 MEASURES OF CENTRAL TENDENCY  63
4.1 CENTRAL TENDENCY

The central tendency of a group of scores (a distribution) refers to the middle of
the group of scores. There are three measures of central tendency: the mean,
mode and median. Each measure of central tendency has its own method to come
up with a single number describing the middle of a group of scores. Beginning
with the mean, this is the most commonly used measure of central tendency
(Aron, Aron & Coups, 2006).
4.2 THE MEAN

Generally, the best measure of central tendency is the ordinary average. This is
the sum of all the scores divided by the number of scores, which is called the
mean. The mean, of a group of scores is a representative value. The mean is often
referred to as the average, when not using the language of statistics(Aron et al.,
2009).
The formula is written as:
M=
X
N
M = symbol for mean; some people also use the symbol „  ‰ alternately
 = symbol for „sum of‰, which means the total of all the numbers that
follow
= scores in the distribution of the variable X
X = sum of X, that is, the total of the scores in the distribution of the
variable X
N = number of scores in a distribution
(Aron et al., 2009)
Steps for Determining the Mean

Let us see Example 1 to determine the mean.
Example 1
Suppose psychology students are participating in a research study to determine
whether time spent studying everyday results in higher grades. The number of
hours were as follows:
2, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0, 2, 3, 4, 1, 1, 0

64  TOPIC 4 MEASURES OF CENTRAL TENDENCY
Step 1: Add up all the scores.
2 + 4 + 3 + 2 + 1 + 0 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 1 + 1 + 0 = 23
Step 2: Divide this sum by the number of scores.
23  12 = 1.92
The mean number of hours studied for this group of psychology students is 1.92.
In other words, on the average, each psychology student studies 1.92 hours per
day. Thus, the information for the 12 students is summarised by the single
number 1.92. The mean does not need to be a score in the distribution, but an
average of the scores. The mean is viewed as the balance point of the scores
(Aron et al., 2009).
Next, what about grouped data? How do we calculate the mean for grouped
data? Let us look at Table 4.1 of Example 2.
Example 2
Table 4.1: GraduatesÊ Ages in Applied Social Science Disciplines in OUM Year 2015
Class Limits Class Boundaries Frequency

24 ă 29 23.5-29.5 17
30 ă 35 29.5-35.5 19
36 ă 41 35.5-41.5 7
42 ă 47 41.5-47.5 4
48 ă 53 47.5-53.5 1
54 ă 59 53.5-59.5 1
60 ă 65 59.5-65.5 1
n = f = 50

Step 1: Find the midpoints of each class.
Class Frequency Midpoint
23.5  29.5
23.5-29.5 17 Xm = = 26.5
2
29.5  35.5
29.5-35.5 19 Xm = = 32.5
2
35.5  41.5
35.5-41.5 7 Xm = = 38.5
2
41.5  47.5
41.5-47.5 4 Xm = = 44.5
2
47.5  53.5
47.5-53.5 1 Xm = = 50.5
2
53.5  59.5
53.5-59.5 1 Xm = = 56.5
2
59.5  65.5
59.5-65.5 1 Xm = = 62.5
2
n = f = 50
Step 2: Multiply the frequency by the midpoint.
Class Frequency Midpoint f Xm

23.5-29.5 17 26.5 17  26.5 = 450.5
29.5-35.5 19 32.5 19  32.5 = 617.5
35.5-41.5 7 38.5 7  38.5 = 269.5
41.5-47.5 4 44.5 4  44.5 = 178
47.5-53.5 1 50.5 1  50.5 = 50.5
53.5-59.5 1 56.5 1  56.5 = 56.5
59.5-65.5 1 62.5 1  62.5 = 62.5
n = f = 50  f Xm = 1685

Step 3: Calculate the mean by dividing the sum by n.
M=
X =
1685
= 33.7 years old
N 50
In order to find the mean for grouped data, we assume that the mean of all the
raw data values in each class is the same as the midpoint of the class (Bluman,
2013). In fact, this is not accurate as the average of the raw data values in each
class usually will not be exactly equal to the midpoint. Nevertheless, we may use
this procedure to obtain an acceptable estimate of the mean because some values
fall above the midpoint and other values fall below the midpoint for each class,
and thus, the midpoint represents an estimate of all values in the class (Bluman,
2013).
SELF-CHECK 4.1
1. Define mean with a formula.
2. Calculate the mean for the following scores: 5, 8, 1, 4, 2, 7, 3.
4.3 THE MEDIAN

An alternative to the mean is the median. Arranging the scores from lowest to
highest, the middle score is the median. When there is an even number of scores,
the median will be between two different scores. In that situation, the median is
the average, the mean of the two scores.
There are times when the median is better than the mean as a representative
value for a group of scores. This occurs when there are a few extreme scores that
would strongly influence the mean but would not affect the median (Aron et al.,
2006).
Steps for Determining the Median

Now, let us see the steps for determining the median. Example 1 is to determine
the median when you have an odd number of scores.

Example 1
Find the median for studentsÊ grades in a psychology paper. The scores are 75,
47, 55, 63, 68, 89, 85, 80, 60, 58, 62, 78, 70, 69, 63, 64 and 74.
Step 1: Arrange from lowest to highest.
47, 55, 58, 60, 62, 63, 63, 64, 68, 69, 70, 75, 78, 78, 80, 85, 89
Ę
Step 2: Select the middle score: 68
The median for studentsÊ grade in psychology paper is 68 marks.
Example 2 is to determine the median when you have an even number of scores.
Example 2
Imagine six psychology students who are asked to record how many hours of
sleep they get in one week, and if less sleep results in higher grades, as part of a
research study. Hours recorded are 28, 50, 56, 50, 49 and 50.
Step 1: Arrange all the scores from lowest to highest.
28, 49, 50, 50, 50, 56
Step 2: Find out how many scores there are to the middle score by adding 1 to
the number of scores and dividing by 2.
Middle score = 6  2 = 3
Step 3: Count up to the middle score or scores. If you have one middle score,
this is the median. If you have two middle scores, the median is the
mean, or average of these two scores.
28, 49, 50, 50, 50, 56

Ę Median, MD = 50, or
50  50
MD = = 50
2
The third and fourth scores are both 50s. Hence, in either way, the
median will be 50.

Unlike the mean, the median will be less influenced by the extreme score of 28,
thus giving you a more representative value of the scores.
The Mode
The mode represents another measure of central tendency. The mode is the most
frequently occuring value in a distribution (Aron et al., 2006). One way to think
of the mode is that it is the value with the largest frequency in a frequency table.
Please remember that the mode and the mean can be different and thus the
frequency is not perfectly symmetrical.
The mode is very useful when studying nominal variables, when the mean and
the median are not useful. For example, how many students major in business or
psychology at a given university. With mode, you may see the studentsÊ
preference in studying at a given university.
Example 1 and Example 2 shows how to determine mode.
Example 1
Find the mode of the number of books students read in two months. The number
of books are
2, 2, 1, 4, 3, 0, 1, 2, 1, 0, 2
Tips: Arranging the data from lowest to highest may help you to identify the
mode easier.
0, 0, 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 2, 3, 4
As „2‰ occurred 4 times, the mode is 2 books.
When the data are grouped, the mode for it is known as the modal class. Modal
class refers to the class with the largest frequency (Bluman, 2013).

Example 2
Table 4.2 shows kilometres driven per week.
Table 4.2: Kilometres Driven per Week

0 - 10.5 2
10.5 - 20.5 4
20.5 - 30.5 6
30.5 - 40.5 11
40.5 - 50.5 14
50.5 - 60.5 33 Modal class
60.5 - 70.5 30
70.5 - 80.5 27
80.5 - 90.5 18
90.5 - 100.5 5
150
The modal class is 50.5-60.5 as the frequency value is the largest. According to
Bluman (2013), the midpoint of the class is used sometimes, rather than the class
boundaries. Thus, the mode could also be given as 55.5km per week.
Which is the best?

Each measure has its strengths and weaknesses. There is no answer regarding
which one is better than the other. It is best to think about how it is used, such as,
which one leads to more statistical analysis, and if that relates directly to your
own work within research.
SELF-CHECK 4.2
1. Define the mode. What type of data is most appropriate to use the
mode?
2. Figure the mean, mode and median for the following data:
46, 52, 55, 32, 44, 48, 61, 59, 44, 49, 44

ACTIVITY 4.1
Explain a situation where the median might be a better method of

describing central tendency than the mean or the mode. For example,
can extreme scores influence any of the measures of central tendency?
Find the mean, median and mode for the examples given as a part of
this activity.
4.5 ORGANISATION
When data is arranged in ascending or descending order, it can be divided into
different parts called deciles, percentiles and quartiles. This extension of the
median formula divides data into equal parts. This division, which helps give
clearer meanings to the numbers, also highlights the relationship between the
divided parts.
4.6 PERCENTILES
Percentiles are measures that divide a group of data into 100 parts. These are
used when assessing performance and comparing the results between different
variables (Glass& Hopkins, 1996).
Percentiles are different from percentages. For instance, a student obtains 83

marks in an exam paper. He has a percentage score of 83. What is his position in
his class? There is no clue of his position in his class by looking at his percentage
score. He could have scored the lowest, the highest or somewhere in between. On
the other hand, if his score of 83 corresponds to the 75th percentile, then it means
he is placed above (or did better than) 75% of the students in his class.
4.6.1 Percentiles Formula

Percentiles formula is as follows:
(Number of value below X)  0.5

Percentiles =  100
Total number of values

Now, we will see the examples on how to find the percentiles.
Example 1
A 20-point quiz was given to 20 students. The scores are as shown below. Find
the percentile rank of a score of 14.
18, 15, 10, 19, 12, 20, 17, 15, 14, 10, 17, 18, 16, 12, 13, 15, 17, 12, 17, 11.
Steps for finding percentile rank are as follows:
Step 1: Arrange the scores from lowest to highest.
10, 10, 11, 12, 12, 12, 13, 14, 15, 15, 15, 16, 17, 17, 17, 17, 18, 18, 19, 20
Step 2: Find the percentile using the formula above.
(Number of value below X)  0.5

Percentiles =  100
Total number of values
11  0.5
Percentiles =  100  57.5 percentile
20
Therefore, a student who obtained a score of 14 did better than 57.5% of the class.
Example 2
Using the scores in Example 1, find the value corresponding to the 35th
percentile.
Steps for finding value corresponding to percentile rank:
Step 1: Arrange the scores from lowest to highest.
10, 10, 11, 12, 12, 12, 13, 14, 15, 15, 15, 16, 17, 17, 17, 17, 18, 18, 19, 20
Step 2: Find out the value using the formula.
Total number of values  percentiles

c =
100
20  35
Step 3: c = 7
100

Step 4: Begin at the lowest score, count up to the seventh value, which is 13. If c
is not a whole number, round it up to the next whole number. For
example, if c is 6.5, you may round it up to 7.
Thus, the score 13 corresponds to the 35th percentile.
4.7 QUARTILES
The values that divide the data set into four equal parts after it has been arranged
in ascending order are called quartiles, which can be separated by Q1, Q2, Q3. In
other words, Q1 can be marked as 25th percentile, Q2 can be labelled as 50th
percentile, which is also the median and Q3 corresponds to 75th percentile, which
are shown below:
Quartiles can be calculated by using the percentiles formula in Subtopic 4.6.1,

where the p will be 25 for Q1, 50 for Q2 and 75 for Q3.
Steps in Finding Quartiles

Find Q1, Q2 and Q3 for the data set 3,9, 27, 5,7,10, 22, 12
Step 1: Arrange the data from lowest to highest.
3, 5, 7, 8, 10, 12, 22, 27
Step 2: Find the median (Q2).
8  10
MD / Q2 = =9
2
Step 3: Find the median of the data with values less than 9.
3, 5, 7, 8
57
Q1 = =6
2

Step 4: Find the median of the data with values greater than 9.
10, 12, 22, 27
12  22
Q3 = = 17
2
Hence, Q1 = 6; Q2 = 9 and Q3 = 17.
4.8 DECILES
This is when variables are divided into ten equal parts. For example, 1/10 would
represent a way of describing a sample of scores to give meaning for a particular
population. Calculation of deciles are similar to quartiles above. The difference is
that deciles is divided into 10 groups, but quartiles is divided into 4 groups.
In a nutshell, taken all together, the relationships among percentiles, deciles and
quartiles are shown below (Bluman, 2013):
(a) Deciles are represented by D1, D2, D3, ⁄ , D9 and they denoted as P10, P20,
P30, ⁄ , P90.
(b) Quartiles are represented by Q1, Q2, Q3 and denoted as P25, P50, P75.
(c) The median is similar to P50, Q2 and D5.
SELF-CHECK 4.3
1. Define percentiles, quartiles, and deciles. What are the

relationships between them?
2. Figure the mean, mode, and median for the following data:
46, 52, 55, 32, 44, 48, 61, 59, 44, 49, 44

 Measures of central tendency summarise the location of a distribution of a

variable, indicating where the center of the distribution tends to be.
 The mean is the average score, which is the most commonly used measure of
central tendency.
 The median is the middle score ă the score at the 50th percentile.
 The mode is the most frequently occuring value in a distribution.
 Percentiles are measures that divide a group of data into 100 parts.
 Quartiles are the values that divide the data set into four equal parts after it
has been arranged in ascending order.
 Deciles are measures that divide a group of data into 10 parts.
Central tendency Modal class

Deciles Mode
Mean Percentiles
Median Quartiles
Aron, A., Aron, E., & Coups, E. (2006). Statistics for psychology (4th ed). Upper
Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education.

NY: McGraw-Hill.
Glass, G.V. & Hopkins, K.D. (1996). Statistical Methods in Education and
Psychology, (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Topic  Measures of
5 Dispersion or
Variability
LEARNING OUTCOMES
1. Describe the degree of variation of the distribution of scores;
2. Identify the relationship between measures of central tendency and
variability;
3. Describe the major concept of measures of variability and identify
when to use each one;
4. Analyse variation and standard deviation; and
5. Compute measures of variability manually.
 INTRODUCTION
In the previous topic, we have discussed measures of central tendency. With
central tendency, we get to identify the central position of the data set that
enables us to see the general ideas of the data. However, measures of central
tendency (such as, mean, mode and median) do not describe the differences
among scores. Other statistical measures are needed to do this, which are known
as measures of variability or dispersion. In other words, the variability describes
the extent to which scores in a distribution differ from one another (Heiman,
2006). We will discuss the range, inter quartile range, variance and standard
deviation as a way of explaining distinctions between populations in this topic.

TOPIC 5 MEASURES OF DISPERSION OR VARIABILITY  77
ACTIVITY 5.1
Discuss with your tutor and coursemates on why is it important to have

measures of variability. What is the difference between measures of
central tendency and measures of variability?
5.1 VARIABILITY
Variability refers to the distribution around the measure of central tendency. For
example, you could ask for the average age of learners in this statistics class. Let
us say that the average age is 35. Nevertheless, it does not mean that everyone in
the class is 35 years old. Instead, some could be younger, say 23 years old, and
some could be older, say 38 years old. This gives you information about the
spread of ages around the mean age of 35 and gives you more information
regarding the population of the class. More specifically, the variability describes
people who are not at the mean age of 35.
5.2 THE RANGE

The range refers to the difference between the largest and smallest score in any
distribution. For example, in the distribution, 5, 2, 1, 4; 5 would be the largest
score and 1 would be the smallest. Thus, the range would be 5 ă 1 = 4. The
meaning of the range is clear, when describing variability. However, one atypical
score, such as an extremely high or extremely low score, can affect the range
significantly. Because of this, the rangeÊs value for inferring has little to no value.
The formula to find the range value is as follows:
R = highest value ă lowest value
5.3 INTERQUARTILE RANGE

Interquartile range is a measure of variability where data is divided into four
equal parts or quartiles: Q1, Q2, Q3 and Q4. When you take Q3 and subtract Q1,
this is the interquartile range, which is the range of the middle 50% of the data
(Gravetter & Wallnau, 2009).

78  TOPIC 5 MEASURES OF DISPERSION OR VARIABILITY
Interquartile range = Q3 ă Q1
For instance, you have a set of data: 63, 97, 87, 20, 256, 58, 33, 152, 179, 138. In
order to find interquartile range, you will need to:
Step 1: Arrange the data
20, 33, 58, 63, 87, 97, 138, 152, 179, 256
Step 2: Find Q1
20, 33, 58, 63, 87

Ę
Step 3: Find Q3
97, 138, 152, 179, 256

Ę
Step 4: Compute interquartile range
Q3 ă Q1 = 152 ă 58 = 94
This can be helpful when two groups show patterns of heterogeneity or

similarity. Because of this limitation, researchers may use measures known as
„variance‰ and „standard deviation‰to get a more meaningful statistic to
measure the variability (Bluman, 2013).
SELF-CHECK 5.1
1. Explain why the range might not be the best estimate of variability.
2. Find the range and interquartile range for the following data:
88, 35, 290, 173, 30, 49, 85, 271, 295, 220, 76, 64, 59, 115, 234

5.4 VARIANCE
The variance explains how spread out the scores is around the mean. To be
precise, the variance is the average of each scoreÊs squared difference from the
mean.
The formula is as follows:
X  M 
2
SD 2

N
Steps for Finding Variance

Supposed a researcher wanted to find out which dye-ware brand can last longer.
The researcher uses 6 pieces of cloths for each brand to test. The results (in
months) are recorded. Find the variance for Brand X.
Brand X Brand Y
6 17
30 25
25 15
16 17
20 20
11 14
Step 1: Find the mean.
M 
X 
6  30  25  16  20  11
 18
N 6

Step 2: Subtract the mean from each data value. This gives each scoreÊs
deviation score. The deviation score is how far away the score is from
the mean.
Brand X
6 ă 18 = ă 12
30 ă 18 = +12
25 ă 18 =+7
16 ă 18 =ă2
20 ă 18 =+2
11 ă 18 =ă7
Step 3: Square each score.
Brand X
( ă 12)2 = 144
(+ 12) 2 = 144
(+ 7) 2 = 49
(ă 2) 2 =4
(+ 2) 2 = 49
(ă 7) 2 =4
Step 4: This gives each scoreÊs squared deviation score. Add up the squared
deviation scores. This total is called the sum of squared deviations.
144 + 144 + 49 + 4 + 49 + 4 = 394
Step 5: Divide the sum of squared deviations by the number of scores.
Variance = 394  6 = 65.67
This gives the average (the mean) of the squared deviations, called the
variance.This is an important relationship. The square root of the variance results
in the standard deviation. If the process is reversed and the standard deviation is
squared, you will get the variance. Also, the closer to the mean, the smaller will
be the variance, which then indicates that farther away from the mean, the
variance will be larger.
ACTIVITY 5.2
Using the previous example, find the variance for Brand Y. Compared
to Brand X, which brand do you think is better? State your reason.
5.5 STANDARD DEVIATION

The most common way of describing the spread of a group of scores is the
standard deviation. The standard deviation is directly related to the variance and
is obtained by taking the square root of the variance. Using simple language, the
standard deviation is the average amount that the scores differ from the mean. It
is important to note that the standard deviation does not describe the shape of a
distribution.
The formula is as follows:
SD  SD 2
Steps for Finding Standard Deviation

Let us look at the same example in Subtopic 5.4. To find the standard deviation,
you will have to first obtain the variance and take the square root of your
variance.
Following are the steps for finding standard deviation.
Step 1: Calculate the variance.
As computed in Subtopic 5.4, the variance for dye-ware brand X is

65.67.
Step 2: Take the square root. The standard deviation is the positive square root
of the variance.
SD  SD 2  variance  56.57  7.52

SELF-CHECK 5.2
1. How do variance and standard deviation explain variability in a

data sample?
2. Compute the variance and standard deviation for 4, 2, 5, 3, 3, 6.
5.6 VARIANCE AND STANDARD DEVIATION

OF UNGROUPED DATA
Let us learn variance and standard deviation of ungrouped data.
Example of Ungrouped Data

A researcher is interested to find out how many clients famous psychologists in
private practice see in a week. The results are recorded.
Number of clients: 18, 30, 14, 13, 20, 35, 12, 10, 21, 38, 15, 15, 19
Steps for Finding Variation and Standard Deviation

Following are the steps:
Step1: Find the mean of the data set.
M 
X 
18  30  14  13  20  35  12  10  21  38  15  15  19
N 13
260
  20
13
Step 2: Subtract the mean from each data value.
Step 3: Square the deviation scores.

Step 4: Add up the squared deviation scores.
Squared
Number of Deviation
îă Mean = Deviation
Clients Scores
Score
18 îă 20 -2 4
30 îă 20 10 100
14 îă 20 -6 36
13 îă 20 -7 49
20 îă 20 0 0
35 îă 20 15 225
12 îă 20 -8 64
10 îă 20 -10 100
21 îă 20 1 1
38 îă 20 18 324
15 îă 20 -5 25
15 îă 20 -5 25
19 îă 20 -1 1
¡=0 954
Step 5: Divide the sum of squared deviations by the number of scores.
X  M 
2
954
Variance  SD 2
   73.38
N 13
Step 6: Take the square root of variance.
SD  SD 2  73.38  8.57
This result tells us that the number of clients a psychologist has varies
from the mean of 20 by an average of 8.57.

5.7 VARIANCE AND STANDARD DEVIATION

OF GROUPED DATA
Now that we have learned how to compute the variance and standard deviation,
how do we compute standard deviation of data in classes? Can we find the
variance and standard deviation if we organise our results into classes? The
answer is definitely yes. The procedure of computing variance and standard
deviation for grouped data is the same as the procedure for computing mean for
grouped data, which uses midpoints of each class.
Example of Grouped Data

Table 5.1 shows kilometres cycled per week.
Table 5.1: Kilometres Cycled per Week
Class Limits Frequency (f)

11-15 1
16-20 4
21-25 6
25-30 7
31-35 5
35-40 2
Here are the steps to find variance and standard deviation of grouped data.
Step 1: Find the midpoint of each class.
Class Limits Frequency (f) Midpoint (Xm)
11-15 1 13
16-20 4 18
21-25 6 23
25-30 7 28
31-35 5 33
35-40 2 38

Step 2: Multiply the frequency by the midpoint for each class.
Step 3: Multiply the frequency by the square of midpoint.
Midpoint
Class Limits Frequency (f) f X m f  X m2
(Xm)
11-15 1 13 13 169
16-20 4 18 72 5,184
21-25 6 23 138 19,044
25-30 7 28 196 38,416
31-35 5 33 165 27,225
35-40 2 38 76 5,776
25 660 95,814
Step 4: Total up the frequency, and the scores you found for steps 3 & 4.
Sum of frequency = n
Sum of f  X m   f X m
Sum of f  X 2m   f X 2m
Step 5: Find the variance using the formula:
n   f X 2m     f X m 
2
SD 
2
n ( n  1)
25(95, 814)  660 2 1, 959, 750

SD 2    3266.25
25(24) 600
Step 6: Take the square root of variance to get the standard deviation.
SD  SD 2  3266.25  57.15

5.8 USES OF VARIANCE AND STANDARD

DEVIATION
According to Bluman (2013), the functions of variance and standard deviation
are:
(a) To Determine the Spread of Data
(i) The larger the variance and standard deviation, the more varied the
data. This information is helpful when comparing two or more data
sets to determine which is more variable.
(ii) For example, looking at the example in Subtopic 5.4, you will find
the standard deviation of Brand X is larger than Brand Y. With this,
you may say that Brand Y is better. This is because, when the means
are equal, the larger the variance or standard deviation is, the
greater the variation of the data. Simply put, the differences in
Brand Y is smaller, which further suggests that Brand Y is more
stable.
(b) Determining the Consistency of Variable

This is important in many fields. For instance, in the manufacture of
fittings, one needs to make sure the variation of the products (in
diameters), such as nuts and bolts, is small, to ensure the parts fit together.
(c) Determining the Number of Data Values that Fall within a Specified
Interval in a Distribution
As stated by Bluman (2013), ChebyshevÊs Theorem shows that at least
75% of the data values will fall within 2 standard deviations of the mean.
(d) To Use in Inferential Statistics

Variance and standard deviation are said to be used commonly in
inferential statistics.

ACTIVITY 5.3
If you had a coin and decided to flip it 5 times in as a group and 6 times
in another group, how would one determine the standard deviation?
First coin flipping group, called Group A (5 times).

Heads, Tails, Tails, Tails, Heads
Second coin flipping group, called Group B (6 times).
Heads, Heads, Tails, Heads, Tails, Tails
Record the outcomes of both Group A and Group B, find the variance,
and the standard deviation. Then explain why this method might seem
more difficult.
5.9 SKEWNESS
A description of a distribution should include its central tendency, variability,
and also the degree of asymmetry. This lack of equivalence between aspects of
the data is referred to as skewness. Skewness can give visual meaning to data
that can sometimes be imprecise through numbers or words in isolation.
Skewness can influence measures of central tendency. For example, when
distributions are positively skewed, the mean will have the largest value and the
mode the lowest. This is reversed when distributions have negative skewness.
Figure 5.1 illustrates this, which will be discussed in more detail in later topics.
Figure 5.1: Skewed distribution

 The variability of scores within a set can be described by using variance and
standard deviation.
 Variability, sometimes called dispersion, also gives meaning to the measures

of central tendency.
 The purpose of variability is to determine how spread out the scores are in a
distribution.
 There are four measures of variability, which are the range, the interquartile
range, the variance and the standard deviation.
 The range is the difference between the largest and smallest score in a
distribution.
 The interquartile range is the difference between the third quartile (Q3) and
the first quartile (Q1).
 Variance and standard deviation are the most frequently used measures of
variability.
 Variance is the mean of the squared deviations.
 Standard deviation is the square root of the variance, which provides a

measure of the standard distance from the mean.
 Positive or negative skewness can influence measures of central tendency,

which then influence the variance and standard deviation.
Deviation Variance
Range Standard Deviation
Interquartile Range Skewness
Variability

NY: McGraw-Hill.
Glass, G.V. & Hopkins, K.D. (1996). Statistical methods in education and
psychology (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Gravetter, E. J., & Wallnau, L. B. (2009). Statistics for behavioral sciences (8th ed.).
Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Heiman, G. W. (2006). Basic statistics for the behavioral science (5th ed.). Boston,
MA: Houghton Mifflin Company.

Topic  The Normal
6 Curve,
Probability
and
Population
LEARNING OUTCOMES

1. Explain a normal distribution or normal curve;
2. Compute probability;
3. Differentiate sample and population; and
4. Report normal distribution, probability, sample and population in
research articles.
 INTRODUCTION
The purpose of psychological research involves the examination of effectiveness
of a particular procedure related to a theoretical construct. However, research is
not designed to give a total truth, but to explain if a certain phenomenon occurs
more or less likely. Total certainty does not exist and this is a key element of how
statistics is used in psychology. Understanding normal distribution, often
referred to as the normal curve, and how this distribution occurs naturally, and
its comparison to research results allows for statistical meaning to be given to
various aspects of research results. How to determine the potential for an
outcome and why entire populations cannot be used in psychological research

TOPIC 6 THE NORMAL CURVE, PROBABILITY AND POPULATION  91
allows for a better understanding of psychology as a science. By the end of this

topic, you will have an understanding of why sampling is so important when
determining the potential, or probability, for outcomes that can be used to infer
meaning to a larger population.
6.1 THE NORMAL CURVE

Normal distribution is often called a normal curve. It is the most important
distribution in statistics and is used extensively. A normal curve can be both
mathematical and theoretical, and can be used to compare the results of
distributions in research to a normal curve. A normal curve can be also described
as a perfect distribution, but researchers do not expect their results to follow
exactly, but desire to understand the approximate in comparison to the normal
curve (see Figure 6.1).
Figure 6.1: Normal curve
One question regarding the normal curve relates to its occurrence in nature. The
most basic answer is yes and this type of distribution occurs frequently in
various settings. How was this noticed? Late in the nineteenth century, Francis
Galton took systematic measurements of many physical, psychological, and
psychomotor characteristics on large samples of people. What he found was that
his findings were very close to a normal distribution. His work soon began to
influence other peopleÊs research and it was found that the findings of other
types of research were very close to a normal distribution. For example, the daily
high temperatures for a particular date in the past 100 years will follow a normal
distribution. Another example could be the reaction times of 12 year old children
to a certain stimuli; again, the results would closely follow a normal curve.
The Normal Curve and the Percentage of Scores

As the shape of normal curve is fixed or standard, we can easily know the
percentage of scores above or below certain point (Aron et al., 2009). To put it
another way, in a normal curve, 50% of the scores are below the mean, where half
of the scores are below the mean in any symmetrical distribution. Furthermore,

92  TOPIC 6 THE NORMAL CURVE, PROBABILITY AND POPULATION
as shown in Figure 6.2, 1 standard deviation (0 to 1) consists of 34% of the

scores, 2 standard deviations (0 to 2) show 48% of the scores, and 3 standard
deviations (0 to 3) consist of 50% (Aron et al., 2009).
Figure 6.2: Normal curve and the percentage of scores

SELF-CHECK 6.1
1. Briefly explain why a normal curve is common in nature.
2. What percentage of scores on a normal curve is above the mean?
3. What percentage of scores on a normal curve is 2 standard

deviations above the mean?
6.2 PROBABILITY
Probability is used to test a statistical inferential statement. In psychology, this
probability might be very important as a psychologist uses probability to reach a
conclusion in a research (Aron et al., 2009).
In statistics, probability is defined as the expected relative frequency of a

particular outcome. An outcome is the result of an experiment. This can also be
any situation where the result is not known in advance. For example, will it rain
tomorrow?

Let us differentiate some terms here as discussed by Aron et al. (2009):
(a) Frequency is repetition of an event. For example, Stanley won 7 out of 10

games.
(b) Relative frequency refers to the frequency of occurrence divide by all

outcomes. For example, Stanley has a 70% chance to win the following
game.
(c) Expected relative frequency refers to our anticipation of the occurrence of

an event over a long period of time, which is also known as long-run
relative-frequency. For example, Stanley should win about 35 if he
competed in 70 games.
(d) The subjective interpretation of probability is used to resolve the certainty

of a particular event occurring based on oneÊs opinions and past experience.
For example, I think Stanley will win in this game as he won against the
same players in the past 3 games.
Suppose that you say there is a 95% chance that it will rain tomorrow. You could
be using a kind of relative frequency interpretation. This would imply that if you
were to check the weather on that particular day in the past you would find it
would rain 95% of the time. However, what you mean is probably more
subjective: on a scale of 0% to 100%, you would rate your confidence or it raining
at 95%. Alternatively, you would feel that it will rain and rate it at 95%.
The interpretation does not affect how probability is computed. Probability is a

very important concept in all statistics and the use of the word in everyday
language is not the same as in statistics and science. A better understanding of
this concept will allow you to identify how the concept is misused, and this
misuse leads to controversies within various elements of society that exist
outside of the sciences.
6.2.1 Computing Probability

Probabilities are determined as the proportion of successful possible outcomes.
The number of possible successful outcomes is divided by the number of all
possible outcomes. Put another way, probability is viewed as a system of
operations and defined to give meaning to samples (Glass & Hopkins, 1996). The
formula is as follows:
Possible successful outcomes

Probability =
All possible outcomes

One example is when you have a six sided dice; the probability of getting 1 is
1/6, or 0.17. A more complex example could involve a statistics class that has 200
students, and 30 of them are male. If you were to pick somebody from the class
randomly, what is the probability of picking a male student?
Follow these three steps for determining probability.
Step 1: Count the number of possible successful outcomes.

(30)
Step 2: Count the number of all possible outcomes.

(200)
Step 3: Divide the number of possible successful outcomes by the number of all
possible outcomes.
30
Probability = = 0.15
200
6.2.2 Range of Probability

A probability is a proportion, the number of possible successful outcomes to the
total number of possible outcomes. A proportion cannot be less than 0 or greater
than 1. The range of proportions is from 0% to 100%. An event that has no chance
of occurring has a probability of 0. An event that is certain to occur has a
probability of 1. Even if an event has a 5% chance of occurring, it is unlikely, but
not impossible.
6.2.3 Symbols of Probability

Probability is written with the symbol „p‰. Usually, the definite probability
number is written in a decimal form. However, there are times where probability
number is shown in fractions or percentages as well. For example, a 50-50 chance
which equals 50/100, can be written as p = 0.5, p = 50%, or p = 1/2. Very often,
probability is also written with the symbol „less than‰. For instance, p < 0.05,
which means the probability is less than 0.05. This is an indication of just how
crucial p values are in the role of probability and in the formation of a hypothesis
(Aquilonius & Brenner, 2015).

SELF-CHECK 6.2
1. If the probability of haze coming back tomorrow is 0.3, what is the

probability that there is no haze tomorrow? Would you bring a
mask with you?
2. If you had two, six sided dice, what is the probability of getting
two ones, often called snake eye, when rolled four times?
3. What is meant by p < 0.01?
4. The probability of an event is the expected relative frequency of a

particular outcome. Explain what is meant by relative frequency
and outcome.
5. Explain two interpretations of probability.
6.3 SAMPLE AND POPULATION

In Topic 1, we had briefly discussed about sample and population. To recall,
population includes all subjects that we study (for example, all students in
OUM), whereas sample refers to a group of subjects that we study (for example,
students who are studying Bachelor Degree in Psychology). Another example is a
research study using a survey to gather data; 500 students might be selected from
a population whose ages are between 20 and 30 years of age, to see whether they
enjoy studying statistics. The opinions of these 500 people are the sample. In
other words, a sample is a portion or a representation of a population (Goodwin,
2007).
Why a Sample and Not an Entire Population?

If you want to learn about a population, it would be best if you could study the
entire population rather than a sample. In research, this is not only impractical,
but not in line with the purpose of scientific research. The point of research is to
make predictions and generalisations that go beyond your original hypothesis
(Goodwin, 2007).
For example, if you wanted to know the rate of depression among rural
Malaysians, one cannot interview every person in a rural setting in Malaysia. The
strategy in almost all psychology research is to study a sample of individuals
who are believed to be representative of the general population. Realistically,
researchers try to study people who do not differ from the general population in

any systematic way that should matter for that topic of research. This allows for a
more manageable way of constructing and then conducting psychological
research.
ACTIVITY 6.1
The psychology club of University X wanted to raise money for

orphanages. Members of the club thought of raising money by selling
raffle tickets for a Movie Night. Before that, they have to estimate how
many students in their university would purchase a ticket. Therefore,
they decided to survey the students.
Suppose the university has 3,000 students in years 1 to 3 with 1,000

students in each year.
(a) How many students would you survey? Explain your sample
numbers and sampling method(s).
(b) State and describe other possible sampling methods.
6.4 IS THE NORMAL CURVE REALLY

NORMAL?
As mentioned earlier, real distributions in the world often closely approximate
the normal curve. How real and how often these distributions closely follow a
normal curve turns out to be important. In statistics, psychologists assume that
the samples in their studies come from populations that follow a normal curve as
they have no idea of the true shape of the population distribution. Furthermore,
psychologists have long debated on the likelihood of a normal distributed
population (Goodwin, 2007).
Nonetheless, there has been a persistent line of criticism of whether nature really
packages itself so neatly and normally. Various researchers in the USA have
studied the results of student tests, which help in university placement, and
found the distribution did not follow a normal curve, no matter how large or
small the sample size. However, these results did not provide answers to why a
normal distribution did not occur, thus an answer that simply states: it is not
known. Although the vast majority of statistical analysis does result in normal or
very close to normal distribution, one can only make the assumption that in
psychology, variation occurs because of the nature of variation in how one
interacts with its environment.

SELF-CHECK 6.3
1. Explain the difference between the population and a sample for a

research study.
2. Why do psychologists usually study samples but not populations?
6.5 RESEARCH ARTICLES

Empirical research is very important in psychological investigation. For example,
why a certain type of psychotherapy works with a certain type of population
needs to have a scientific explanation for the mechanisms of change. Statistical
methods provide a background for not only describing a sample or population,
but they also allow the researcher to infer the results that can apply to a larger
group. Sometimes you see the normal curve mentioned, usually when a
researcher is describing the pattern of scores on a particular variable. However,
because there are different types of research, dealing with real people can
sometimes provide difficulties in how research is constructed. These include how
samples are selected, which populations are represented, and if the results do
follow a normal curve. Given that probability is rarely discussed in many articles,
unless it is used as the primary focus or made in reference to statistical
significance (for example, followed by „p < 0.05‰), research articles need to have
a section of limitations that states what needs additional follow up study.
Research needs to be read with careful attention to detail to determine if the
results can be applied to a larger population.
 Most psychology research follows a bell-shaped, symmetrical distribution,

which is known as the normal curve.
 As the shape of normal curve is fixed or standard, there is a standard

percentage of scores above or below certain point. 1 standard deviation
consists of 34% of the scores, 2 standard deviations show 48% of the scores,
and 3 standard deviations consist of 50%.

 Probability is defined as the expected relative frequency of a particular

outcome. An outcome is the result of an experiment, which is used by
psychologists to reach a conclusion in a research. Some psychologists suspect
that probability is the subjective degree of belief that the event will occur.
 Probability is determined by the proportion of successful outcomes to total

possible outcomes, which can be written in a formula as:
Possible successful outcomes

Probability =
All possible outcomes
 Population include all subjects that we study, whereas sample is a portion or

a representation of a population in a study. It would be best to include the
entire population instead of a sample, but it is impractical. Furthermore, the
purpose of a research is to predict and generalise one result beyond the
hypothesis.
 Controversies exist, with psychologists debating whether a normal curve is

actually normal and if psychological research actually represents variables in
a non-research setting.
Expected relative frequency Population

Frequency Probability
Long-run relative frequency Relative frequency
interpretation of probability
Sample
Normal curve
Subjective interpretation of probability
Normal distribution

Aquilonius, B. B., & Brenner, M. B. (2015). Students reasoning about p-values.

Statistics Education Research Journal, 14(2), 7-27.
Goodwin, C. J. (2007). Research methods in psychology: Methods and design (5th

ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Glass, G. V. & Hopkins, K. D. (1996). Statistical methods in education and

psychology (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Topic  Introduction
7 to the t-Test
LEARNING OUTCOMES
1. Identify the steps of hypothesis testing;
2. State null hypothesis, research hypothesis, level of significance, test
statistic, p value, and statistical significance;
3. Differentiate t-test for a single sample, and t-test for dependent means;
4. Perform appropriate t-tests depending on the research;
5. Compute the t-tests;
6. Define effect size and statistical power; and
7. Report statistics in research articles.
 INTRODUCTION
In this topic, you will learn hypothesis testing procedures, particularly with an
unknown population variance ă t-test. As stated by Creech (2016), t-test may be
the most common test used to test the hypothesis.
To begin, let us get some ideas on hypothesis testing. According to Aron et al.
(2009), hypothesis testing refers to the procedure used to determine if the results
of the research is „statistically significant‰, which means having support for a
particular theory or practical innovation. In other words, the aim of hypothesis
testing is to examine if the obtained difference between the data and the
hypothesis is significantly greater than would be expected by chance (Gravetter
& Wallnau, 2009).

TOPIC 7 INTRODUCTION TO THE t-TEST  101
Often, when researchers conduct a study, they want to learn about an unknown
population; they usually compare two or more groups of scores with one
another, without any direct information on the populations (Aron et al., 2009). In
this situation, the researcher may use t-test instead of z-test (which you will learn
in Topic 9 later on the statistical procedures that allow researchers to test
hypotheses with a known population), by comparing the mean of a single sample
to a population with a known mean but an unknown variance (Aron et al., 2009).
As you read along, you will find that t-test and z-test are very similar.
7.1 ONE SAMPLE t-TEST

In proper definition, one sample t-test (also known as t-test for a single sample) is
a hypothesis testing procedure used to examine the mean of a population and
compare it with the mean of a population in which the standard deviation of the
population is unknown (Aron et al., 2009). This means that a statistical decision
on whether or not the sample mean is different from the population mean can be
made by getting the sample mean (that is drawn randomly from the population)
and comparing it with the population mean (Statistics Solutions, 2013).
For instance, a manager of a flower business wants to find out if his companyÊs
delivery service is compatible to the competitorÊs who advertises delivery time of
30 minutes. Hence, the manager gathers a random sample of the companyÊs
flowers delivery times, and then uses one sample t-test to examine if its mean
delivery time is significantly lower than its competitors.
One sample t-test operates similar to a z-test (Aron et al., 2009). The only
difference between a t-test and a z-test is that the z-test uses the actual standard
deviation () or the population variance (2), whereas the t-test uses the
corresponding sample standard deviation or variance, as the population value is
unknown (Gravetter & Wallnau, 2009). In other words, z -test requires you to
know the values for both mean and standard deviation (or variance) of the
population, in order to compare the sample mean and calculate the standard
error (Gravetter &Wallnau, 2009).
7.1.1 Basic Principle of t-test: Estimating the

Population Variance from the Sample Scores
Logically, when we collect data from a group of people in our study, these
people are said to be a random sample that represent that particular population.
Hence, the sample variance should reflect the population variance (Aron et al.,
2009). Simply put, if the population scores have a great deal of variation, then the
sample (that is randomly selected from that population) scores should also have

102  TOPIC 7 INTRODUCTION TO THE t-TEST
a great deal of variation and vice versa. Therefore, it is said to be possible to use
the sample scores variation (or standard deviation) to infer the population scores.
As sample variance will usually be smaller than the population variance, we

need to correct the sampling error by using degrees of freedom (Aron et al.,
2009).
7.1.2 Degrees of Freedom

Degrees of freedom are defined as the number of scores in a sample that are free
to vary (Gravetter & Wallnau, 2009). In other words, degrees of freedom refer to
the number of values that need to be known before estimating one statistic from
an estimate of another (Aron et al., 2009).
The formula for degrees of freedom is,
Degrees of freedom = df = n ă 1
The estimated population variance formula is given by:
X  M 
2
ss
S2  
N 1 df
For example, imagine that you want to study whether students skip more classes
when they stay in hostel compared to those who stay with family. Suppose you
have the informal survey from your collegeÊs management which shows that the
students skipped an average of 2 classes per 14 week semester. You then
randomly pick 20 students who stay in hostel and ask how many classes they
skipped in a semester (or check their attendance record). Your result is that
students who stay in hostel skipped an average of 4 classes per semester.
Find the estimated population variance from the sampleÊs 20 scores.
Here is the step by step calculation.
Step 1: Compute the sum of squared deviation scores.
X  M 
2
In order to compute the sum of squared deviation scores, (a) subtract

the mean from each of the scores, (b) square the deviation scores and (c)
total up the squared deviation scores.
In this, imagine that the SS comes out to be 872.

Step 2: In order to get the estimated population variance, you will need to
divide this sum of squared deviation scores by degrees of freedom.
ss 872
S2 = = = 45.89
df 20  1
SELF-CHECK 7.1
1. Define one sample t-test and explain when a researcher should

use a t-test instead of a z-test.
2. A sample of n = 6 scores has SS = 112. Compute the sample

variance, as well as the estimated standard error for the sample
mean.
7.1.3 Standard Deviation of the Distribution of Means

After obtaining estimated population variance, you can then find out the
standard deviation of the comparison distribution. You can predict the variance
of the distribution of means by dividing the estimated population variance (S2)
by the sample size (Aron et al., 2009).
S2
Variance of the distribution of means: S M2 
N
Standard deviation of the distribution of means: S M  S M2
Looking back at the previous example, the sample size was 20 and the estimated
population variance was 45.89 as computed. What is the variance and standard
deviation of the distribution of means? Let us see the calculation.
S 2 45.89
(a) Variance of the distribution of means: S M2    2.29.
N 20
(b) Standard deviation of the distribution of means: S M  S M2  2.29  1.51

Be aware that the symbols for the variance and standard deviation of the
distribution of means use S instead of  when it is with an estimated population
variance (Aron et al., 2009). The symbols of different types of standard deviations
and variances are shown in Table 7.1.
Table 7.1: Summary of Different Types of Standard Deviations and Variances
Statistical Term Symbol

Sample standard deviation SD
Population standard deviation 
Estimated population standard deviation S
Sample variance SD2
Population variance 2
Estimated population variance S2
7.1.4 The t Distribution

Gravetter and Wallnau (2009) defined t distribution as the complete set of t
values computed for every possible random sample for a specific sample size (n)
or a specific degrees of freedom (df). The t distribution estimates the shape of a
normal distribution and the shape varies according to the degrees of freedom
(Gravetter & Wallnau, 2009). In other words, the larger the sample size or
degrees of freedom, the nearer the t distribution to normal z distribution, which
is shown in Figure 7.1. Hence, t distribution is also identified as a family of t
distributions (Aron et al., 2009).

Figure 7.1: t distribution compared to the normal distribution

Source: Gravetter & Wallnau, 2009
7.1.5 The Cut-off Sample Score for Rejecting the Null

Hypothesis by Using t Table
Now, we are going to use a t distribution table to find out the t score, which will
be similar to how we use the z table to find out the z score later. Up to now, we
have found the distribution of means in this example that has a mean of 2 and a
standard deviation of 1.51. Then, by referring to the t table in Figure 7.2, we can
locate the t distribution with 19 degrees of freedom, which is 1.729.

Figure 7.2: Cut-off scores for t distributions with 1 through 19 degrees of freedom

If your one-tailed test is testing whether the mean of Population 1 is more than
the mean of Population 2, the cut-off t score is positive, and vice versa (Aron et
al., 2009). Looking at our example on students who skipped classes, assume that
we are testing whether students staying in hostels (Population 1) skip more
classes than students who stay with family (Population 2). This means our cut-off
t score is positive. Therefore, you will reject the null hypothesis if your sample
mean is 1.729 or more standard deviations above the mean on the comparison
distribution.
In addition, as you can see in the t table in the Appendix A, the degrees of
freedom range from1 through 30, then 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, and so on. What if your
study has degrees of freedom of 53? As stated by Aron et al. (2009), it is safer to
use the nearest degrees of freedom to yours on the table with those less than
yours. In this case, a study with 53 degrees of freedom, you would use the cut-off
for df = 50.
7.1.6 The Sample Mean’s Score on the Comparison

Distribution: The t Score
The method of finding t score is the same as how you find the z score on the
comparison distribution. The only difference is that, instead of calling z score, we
call it as t score.
M  42
t    1.32
SM 1.51
In our example, looking at the formula above, the t score would be 1.32. It is
obtained by subtracting the population mean from the sampleÊs mean and then
dividing by the standard deviation of the distribution of means based on an
estimated population variance.
7.1.7 Null Hypothesis: To Reject or Not?

If the calculated value is greater than the table value, the null hypothesis will be
rejected and the research hypothesis accepted (Aron et al., 2009).
In our example, the cut-off t score was 1.729 and the actual t score for the sample
was 1.32. Since the calculated t value is lower than the t value from the table, the
null hypothesis cannot be rejected, and this study is said to be inconclusive.

7.1.8 Summary of Hypothesis Testing When the

Population Variance is Unknown
Imagine that 4 employees of a screw manufacturing factory are randomly
selected. Their production in a day is recorded in kilograms: 20, 22, 22, and 20.
The average production for an employee per day is 23kg. Test the hypothesis that
the employees produce fewer screws than others.
Aron et al., (2009) has stated the steps of hypothesis testing as follows:
Step 1: Restate the research hypothesis and null hypothesis
Population 1: 4 employees selected

Population 2: Employees in the factory
Research hypothesis:
Population 1 produces fewer screws than population 2.
Null hypothesis:
Population 1 will not produce fewer screws than population 2.
Step 2: Determine the characteristics of the comparison distribution
The mean of the distribution of means = 23
The standard deviation of the distribution of means = 0.57
(a) Compute the sample mean
M = (20 + 22 + 22 + 20)  4 = 21
(b) Compute estimated population variance
X  M 
2
ss
S 2
 
N 1 df
X  M 
2
= (20 ă 21)2 + (22 ă 21)2 + (22 ă 21)2 + (20 ă 21)2
=4
X  M 
2
4
S2    1.33
N 1 4 1

(c) Compute the variance of the distribution of means
S 2 1.33
SM2
   0.33
N 4
(d) Compute the standard deviation of the distribution of means
S M  S M2  0.33  0.57
Step 3: Determine the cut-off sample score on the comparison distribution at

which the null hypothesis should be rejected. From the t table, the cut-
off score for one-tailed t-test at the .05 level for df = 3 is -2.353. As the
research hypothesis state to produce fewer screws, the cut-off t score
would be negative.
Step 4: Determine your sampleÊs score on the comparison distribution
M   21  23
t   3.51
SM 0.57
Step 5: Decide whether to reject the null hypothesis
The t of -3.51 is more extreme than the needed t of 2.343. Hence, the null
hypothesis is rejected and research hypothesis is supported.
SELF-CHECK 7.2
A random sample of 16 sheep was selected from farm. The amount of

milk collected in a week was recorded in kilograms:
156 172 160 155 105 146 102 155

161 169 144 111 128 153 130 168
The average amount of milk collected per week is 126kg. Test the
hypothesis that a sheep produces more than 120kg milk per week by
demonstrating the hypothesis testing steps.

ACTIVITY 7.1
Collect a random sample of about 5 to 10 similar items on which the

contents are stated. For instance, boxes of paper clips, packets of sweets,
boxes of matches, boxes of biscuits, boxes of cards, packets of buttons,
and so on.
Count the contents of each item, and examine the hypothesis that your
sample mean differs significantly from the value stated.
7.2 THE t-TEST FOR DEPENDENT MEANS

To recall, one sample t-test is used when the population mean is known but not
the variance, and when there is a single sample of scores. In fact, it is common
that we do not know the populationÊs mean, and have two sets of scores in most
research that we conducted. For example, we want to see the difference in the
person before and after certain intervention. The person (or the sample) will have
two scores, as the person is measured twice. This is called repeated-measured
design, or within-subject design (Gravetter& Wallnau, 2009).
In this situation, we cannot use the one sample t-test but to use t-test for
dependent means. The procedure of obtaining t-test for dependent means is
similar to the procedure in obtaining one sample t-test. However according to
Aron et al., (2009), t-test for dependent means:
(a) Use difference score (D value), which is the difference of two values,
instead of raw scores; and
(b) Assume that the mean difference for the general population is zero.
The difference score is:
Difference score = D = X2 ă X1

7.2.1 Steps for Computing t-test for Dependent

Means
Imagine that a researcher wants to examine the effectiveness of a social skills
training program. The researcher gives the parents a questionnaire to score their
childrenÊs social skills level before the program starts. After that, the children will
attend the program for a certain period. At the end of the program, the same
questionnaire is given to the parents again to rate their childrenÊs social skills.
The scores are recorded in Table 7.2.
Table 7.2: Social Skills Rating of Children Before

and After Attending Social Skills Training Program
Social Skills Rating

Child
Before After
A 87 101
B 92 118
C 103 126
D 99 120
E 106 135
F 90 113
Steps of hypothesis testing (Aron et al., 2009) are as follows:
Step 1: Restate the research hypothesis and null hypothesis
Research hypothesis:
Social skills improved after the social skills training program.
Null hypothesis:
No improvement in social skills after the social skills training program.
Step 2: Determine the characteristics of the comparison distribution
(a) Compute the difference score of each child.
Difference score = rating score after ă rating score before

Social Skills Rating

Child Difference
Before After
A 87 101 14
B 92 90 -2
C 103 126 23
D 99 120 21
E 106 135 29
F 90 113 23
108
(b) Compute the mean of the difference scores.
108
M= = 18
6
(c) Assume a mean of the distribution of means of difference scores of

0:  = 0.
(d) Compute the standard deviation of the distribution of means of

difference scores.
Social Skills Rating Deviation Squared

Child Difference (Difference Deviation
Before After ă M) (SS)
A 87 101 14 -4 16
B 92 90 -2 -20 400
C 103 126 23 5 25
D 99 120 21 3 9
E 106 135 29 11 121
F 90 113 23 5 25
108 596

(i) Find the estimated population variance of difference scores
ss 596
S2    119.2
df 5
(ii) Find the variance of the distribution of means of difference

scores
S 2 119.2
SM2
   19.87
N 6
(iii) Find the standard deviation of the distribution of means of

difference scores
S M  S M2  19.87  4.46
(e) The shape is a t distribution with df = N ă 1.
Step 3: Determine the cut-off sample score on the comparison distribution at

which the null hypothesis should be rejected.
(a) Decide the significance level, and whether to use one-tailed or

two-tailed test.
(b) Look up for appropriate cut-off in a t table.
One-tailed test is used as the researcher is only interested in specific

direction of difference. From the t table, the cut-off score for one-tailed t-
test at the 0.05 level for df = 5 is 2.015. In this example, the research
hypothesis predicts a positive difference score of +2.015, as it states that
the childrenÊs social skills improved after attending the social skills
training program.
Step 4: Determine your sampleÊs score on the comparison distribution.
M   18  0
t    4.04
SM 4.46

Step 5: Decide whether to reject the null hypothesis.
The t of 4.04 is more extreme than the needed t of 2.015. Hence, the null
hypothesis is rejected and research hypothesis is supported.
ACTIVITY 7.2
Review and compare z test, t-test for a single sample and t-test for
dependent means with your tutor and coursemates. Create a
comparison table for these three tests.
7.3 ASSUMPTIONS OF t-TEST

All statistical analyses have certain requirements, which are known as
assumptions. If the assumptions are not fulfilled, the analysis is nullified
(Starkweather, 2010).
According to Aron et al. (2009), the comparison distribution that we use is a t

distribution that requires the population to be distributed normally. With this, a
t-test assumes that the population is normally distributed. If the population
distribution is not normally distributed, it may lead to some indeterminate shape
distribution, which further affects the cut-offs on t table (Aron et al., 2009).
Nevertheless, Gravetter and Wallnau (2009) said that this normality assumption
is least important especially when there is a large sample. In other words, a
normal population distribution is important when the sample size is small. To be
safe, one just needs to use a larger sample. In addition, Aron et al. (2009) argued
that we have no idea if the population is normally distributed when we do
research. It is almost impossible to have equal variances for two populations.
Fortunately, statisticians found that distributions in psychology research are
always close to a normal curve and that one can still obtain accurate results with
t-tests even when the population is far from normal (Aron et al., 2009).
Aron et al. (2009) reminded us to be cautious when doing one-tailed test,

especially when the population is highly skewed. Difference scores that are
highly skewed further suggest highly skewed populations that will give you
distorted results.

SELF-CHECK 7.3
1. Describe some situations which are suitable for using t-test for
independent means.
2. State the assumptions for t-tests. Suggest alternative solutions if

the assumption is not fulfilled.
3. Five students are tested before and after an experimental

procedure, and scores are recorded in the table below. Test the
hypothesis that there is no change, using the 0.05 significance
level.
Student Before After

A 15 30
B 20 30
C 30 50
D 20 15
E 40 35
7.4 EFFECT SIZE

In statistics, effect size is a standardised measure of the difference between
population means (Aron et al., 2009). In other words, effect size shows the degree
of difference between two populations.
For example, suppose a researcher wants to conduct an experiment to investigate

the effects of sleep hours on learning.
20 students are selected, randomly divided into two groups:
(a) Sleep for 8 hours; and

(b) Sleep for four hours.

Let us say the first groupÊs mean score is 110 and the second groupÊs mean score
is 90. We know that there is a difference of 20. However, how big is this
difference? The idea of effect size is that if there are no overlaps and all students
in the first group obtain a higher score than those in the second group, the
difference is very significant, and vice versa (Coe, 2002).
7.4.1 Calculating Effect Size
1   2
d

d is the symbol of effect size, also known as CohenÊs d.
 is the population mean
 is the standard deviation
Looking at the experiment of sleep and learning, suppose the standard deviation
is 24, the effect size would be:
1   2 110  90
d   0.83
 24
7.4.2 Effect Size Conventions

In psychological research, Cohen has come up with general effect size
conventions to interpret effect size. The CohenÊs conventions of small, medium,
and large effect sizes are summarised in the Table 7.3.
Table 7.3: Summary of CohenÊs Effect Size Conventions for Mean Differences
Description Effect Size (d)

Small 0.20
Medium 0.50
Large 0.80
In terms of the effect size conventions, the sleep and learning experiment has a
large effect size. In other words, it says that the effect size of the experiment is
very substantial.

7.5 STATISTICAL POWER

According to Aron et al. (2009), statistical power of a research is the probability
that the study will produce a statistically significant result if the research
hypothesis is true. In simple English, statistical power is the probability that a
study will identify an effect if there is an effect to be identified.
7.5.1 Factors Affecting the Power of a Study

The statistical power of a study is affected by two main factors (Aron et al., 2009):
(a) The Effect Size that the Research Hypothesis Predicts
(i) The bigger the effect size, the greater the power there is in the study.
In other words, if there is a big mean difference in the population, the
chances of getting a significant result in the study is higher; and
(ii) Nonetheless, the effect size is also determined by the population

standard deviation. The smaller the standard deviation, the larger is
the effect size.
(b) The Sample Size

The more people there are in a study, the greater the power there is in the
study. With a larger sample size, the standard deviation becomes smaller,
which further increases the power of the study.
In brief, it is important for researchers to have enough number of samples in their

study, in order to get significant results when their hypothesis is true. Usually,
researchers would calculate the needed number of participants (such as power)
before they conduct a study; this step can be done by using a power table, power
software package, or internet power calculator (Aron et al., 2009).
7.5.2 Planning Sample Size

Aron et al. (2009) stated that researchers often use 80 percent power as minimum
power, to make sure their research is worth doing. At the same time, they have
written down the approximate power for studies in Table 7.4, and the
approximate number of participants needed in order to get 80 percent power in
Table 7.5.

Table 7.4: Approximate Power for Studies Using the t-test for Dependent
Means in Testing Hypotheses at the 0.05 Significance Level
Effect Size
Difference Scores in
Small Medium Large
Sample (N)
(d = 0.20) (d = 0.50) (d = 0.80)
One-tailed test
10 0.15 0.46 0.78
20 0.22 0.71 0.96
30 0.29 0.86 *
40 0.35 0.93 *
50 0.40 0.97 *
100 0.63 * *
Two-tailed test
10 0.09 0.32 0.66
20 0.14 0.59 0.93
30 0.19 0.77 0.99
40 0.24 0.88 *
50 0.29 0.94 *
100 0.55 * *
*Power is nearly 1
Suppose a researcher expects a medium effect size. He uses the significance level
of 0.05, two-tailed, and with 30 participants, the study would have a power of
0.77. In other words, it means that there is a 77% chance that this study will come
out significant if the research hypothesis is true, with medium effect size.

Table 7.5: Approximate Number of Research Participants Needed for 80% Power for the
t-test for Dependent Means in Testing Hypotheses at the 0.05 Significance Level
Effect Size
Small Medium Large
(d = 0.20) (d = 0.50) (d = 0.80)
One-tailed 156 26 12
Two-tailed 196 33 14
Imagine that you would like to conduct a research, in which you expect a
medium effect size and use the significance level of 0.05, one-tailed. By referring
to the table, you would need 26 participants to obtain 80% power.
SELF-CHECK 7.4
Suppose you want to carry out a study to predict the mean of the
population of difference scores to be 30 and the population standard
deviation 60. You plan to test significance using a t-test for dependent
means, one-tailed, with a significance level of 0.05.
(a) Compute the predicted effect size;
(b) Compute the power of this study if you conduct with 40

participants; and
(c) Compute the number of participants needed to have 80% power.
7.6 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF

REPEATED-MEASURES DESIGNS
Repeated-measures design is about using the same participants for the complete
experimental conditions (Aron et al., 2009).
Testing the same group of participants twice often yields high power in a study,
compared to a study that separates the participants into two groups to be tested
separately (Aron et al., 2009). The reason of having higher power in repeated-
measure design is that the standard deviation of difference scores is typically
low. This leads to a larger effect size and increases the power (Aron et al., 2009).

In contrast, Cook and Campbell (1979, as cited in Aron et al., 2009) expressed that
testing the same group of people without any control group is a weak design
because it may have variations in factors that will influence the results. Some
examples that may affect the results in repeated-measures design are matured or
improved participants, participants drop-out, order effects, and so on.
7.7 t-TEST IN RESEARCH ARTICLES

In research articles, t-test is usually described in a standard format: degrees of
freedom, t score, and significance level (Aron et al., 2009). For instance, you
always see „t(19) = 3.20, p < 0.05‰ in the research articles. This simply tells us that
the researcher:
(a) Used a t-test with 19 degrees of freedom;

(b) Found a t score of 3.20; and
(c) The result was significant at the 0.05 level.
In addition, Bates College (2011) stated that the mean is usually reported together
with a measure of variability (such as standard deviation or standard error of the
mean). Nevertheless, standard deviation of difference scores is seldom reported
in articles (Aron et al., 2009). Other than that, researchers may also report the
direction of the relationship (such as, one-tailed or two tailed) in their journal
articles. According to Aron and his colleagues (2009), if the direction is not
specified, we will assume the research as two-tailed test. To give an example, a
researcher may report the results like „The sample of employees (M = 18, SD =
2.76) was significantly different from the known mean of 11 for the employees as
a whole, t(24) = 2.79, p < 0.05, one-tailed.‰
For t-test for dependent means, a researcher may report the results as „There was
a significant growth in social skills level, increasing from a mean of 12.9 before
participating in social skills training program to a mean of 15.2 after attending
the social skills training program, t(9) = 5.2, p < 0.05‰.

SELF-CHECK 7.5
A programme to decrease water consumption was carried out in four

cities in the Klang-Valley area, Malaysia commencing in June 2014. The
amount of water consumption (average litres of water used per person
per day) was measured during May 2014 before the program started
and then May 2015, after the program had been run for a year. The
results were:
City May 2014 May 2015

Kuala Lumpur 300 286
Shah Alam 280 278
Petaling Jaya 279 270
Subang Jaya 260 255
(a) Using the 0.05 level of significance, was there a significant

decrease in the amount of water consumption?
(b) Demonstrate hypothesis testing.
(c) Report your results as in a research article.
 When the population variance is unknown, use a formula that divides the
sum of squared deviation scores by the degrees of freedom (df = N ă 1) to
estimate the population variance from the scores in the sample.
 A sampleÊs number of standard deviations from the mean of the comparison

distribution is known as a t score.
 t-test for a single sample is used when a sample is compared to a known

population mean but unknown population variation.
 t-test for dependent means is used when you have two scores for each
participant or when you have scores from pairs of participants. Hypothesis
testing procedure is the same as t-test, but to look for a difference or change
in score for each participant.

 An assumption of the t-test is that the population distribution is a normal

curve. t-test is quite accurate even though the population distribution may
not come out as a normal curve.
 The effect size of a study using a t-test for dependent means is the mean of
the difference scores divided by the standard deviation of the difference
scores.
 Statistical power of a research is the probability that the study will produce a
statistically significant result if the research hypothesis is true.
 t-tests are reported in research articles in a standard format: t(12) = 3.21,

p < 0.05.
Assumption Research hypothesis

Cut-off score Sample size
Degrees of freedom (df) Standard deviation
Difference scores Statistically significant
Hypothesis t distribution
Hypothesis testing t score
Null hypothesis t table
One sample t-tests t-test
One-tailed test t-test for a single sample
Power t-test for dependent means
Probability Two-tailed test
Repeated measure design Variance

Bates College (March 7, 2011). Reporting statistical results in your paper.

Retrieved from http://abacus.bates.edu/~ganderso/biology/resources/
writing/HTW_Guide_Reporting_Statistics_3-7-2011.pdf
Coe, R. (September 25, 2002). ItÊs the effect size, stupid: What effect size is and
why it is important. Retrieved from http://www.leeds.ac.uk/educol/
documents/00002182.htm
Starkweather, J. (October 15, 2010). Introduction to the t-tests. Retrieved from

http://www.unt.edu/rss/class/Jon/ISSS_SC/Module008/isss_m8_intrott
ests/isss_m8_introttests.html
Creech, S. (2016). T-test. Retrieved fromhttp://www.statisticallysignificant

consulting.com/Ttest.htm
Statistics Solutions. (2013). One sample t-test. Retrieved from http://www.

statisticssolutions.com/academic-solutions/resources/directory-of-
statistical-analyses/one-sample-t-test/

APPENDIX A

Topic  Correlation
8
LEARNING OUTCOMES
1. Create the scatterplot;
2. Identify the direction and strength of a relationship;
3. Calculate the correlation coefficient;
4. Interpret the scatterplot, outliers and correlation coefficient; and
5. Report correlation in research articles.
 INTRODUCTION
In Topic 7, we learned t-test for independent means, which compares two groups
of scores from two separate groups of people. In this topic, we are going to look
at the association between two groups of scores correlation. In other words,
correlation, which is a statistical procedure, allows us to measure and describe a
relationship between two variables (Aron et al., 2009).
According to Gravetter and Wallnau (2009), correlation usually involves simply

observation of two variables without trying to control or manipulate the
variables. For example, a researcher is interested in finding out if there is
relationship between studentsÊ knowledge and attitudes towards people with
schizophrenia. The researcher may measure their current knowledge and attitude
through a questionnaire, but not manipulate them. With this, it is noticed that
each individual has two scores from each variable. These scores can be can be
showed in a table (see Table 8.1) or scatterplot (see Figure 8.1).

126  TOPIC 8 CORRELATION
Table 8.1: Correlational Data between StudentsÊ Knowledge

and Attitudes towards People with Schizophrenia
Individual Knowledge Level Attitude

A 70 8
B 64 7
C 89 8
D 92 9
E 59 5
F 97 9
G 79 8
H 69 6
I 66 7
J 83 8
Figure 8.1: Correlational data between studentsÊ knowledge

and attitudes towards people with schizophrenia
This topic will allow us to explore correlation, which includes graphing

correlation, different types of correlations, computing correlation coefficient and
its statistical significance, as well as, correlation coefficient effect size and power.

TOPIC 8 CORRELATION  127
ACTIVITY 8.1
Spurious Correlation
Using your imagination, together with your conceptual idea on
correlation, think of two humorous variables that can be linked together.
Share in the forum or with your coursemates.
Examples can be seen in this website:
http://mnstats.morris.umn.edu/introstat/public/instruction/causatio
n.html
8.1 GRAPHING CORRELATIONS: THE

SCATTERPLOT
As stated in the introduction, correlational data can be presented in a table or
graph. Figure 8.1 shows the relationship between the knowledge and attitude
towards people with schizophrenia. The graph is an example of a scatterplot (or
scatter diagram), which allows you to see the pattern of the correlation between
the two variables (Aron et al., 2009).
8.1.1 Steps in Making Scatterplot

For example, imagine a researcher is examining the relationship of sleep to
calories intake. The results are recorded in Table 8.2.
Table 8.2: Hours Slept and Calories Intake
Hours Slept Calories Intake

6 2,545
7 2,010
5 3,120
4 3,485
8 1,998
10 2,100
5 2,986

Step 1: Draw the x axis and y axis. Determine which variable to put on which
axis.
(a) Usually, it is flexible to put any variable on any axis. Nonetheless,

if researcher is thinking of one of the variables predicting the
other, this variable goes on the y axis.
Step 2: Determine suitable range of values to use for each variable and mark
them on the axes.
(a) Numbers are to start from where the axes meet, with a value of 0
and continue to the highest value in the measure.
(b) A scatterplot is often presented in a square with a ratio of 1:1.

Step 3: Mark a dot for each pair of scores.
(a) Mark a dot by referring to the value on the x axis and the value on
y axis for each pair of scores.
(b) When the same pair of scores occurs more than one time, put a
second dot as near as possible to the first dot. The dot may be
touching the first dot, but you need to make it clear that there are
two dots in the same place. Otherwise, put number 2 in that place.

SELF-CHECK 8.1
Suppose a researcher is studying the relationship between hours of

leisure reading to relaxed mood. The results are recorded in the table
below. Make a scatterplot, where relaxed mood ranges from 0 to 10.
Hours of Leisure Reading Relaxed Mood

2 6
1 6
3 8
4 9
1 5

8.2 PATTERNS OF CORRELATION

Making a scatterplot enables us to gain some idea about the direction of the
relationship between the two variables in a study.
8.2.1 Linear and Curvilinear Correlations

When both variables increase and decrease at the same rate in the same direction,
they have a positive linear relationship (Gravetter& Wallnau, 2009). It can be
represented with a straight line going up on a graph, as shown in Figure 8.2.
Figure 8.2: Scatterplot from Figure 8.1 with line drawn to show general trend
On the other hand, when one variable increases but the other variable decreases,
it is said to have a negative linear relationship (Gravetter& Wallnau, 2009). It is
represented with a straight line going down a graph, as shown in Figure 8.3.

Figure 8.3: Negative relationship between hot chocolate sales and temperature
Nonetheless, the general pattern between the two variables sometimes does not
follow a straight line but a more complex pattern, where one variable increases
and the other variable increases and decreases at the same time. This is known as
a curvilinear relationship (Aron et al., 2009). Figure 8.4 shows an example of a
curvilinear relationship graph.
Figure 8.4: Curvilinear relationship between height and self-esteem

8.2.2 No Correlation
So far, we have looked at positive, negative, and complex relationships between
two variables. We have to be aware that there is also the possibility of having no
correlation between two variables. As shown in Figure 8.5, there is no line, but
dots are distributed everywhere.
Figure 8.5: No correlation between weight and shoe size
8.2.3 Strength of Correlation

With the correlation scatterplot, we can also notice the consistency or the strength
of the relationship between two variables. As stated by Aron et al. (2009), in a
scatterplot, there are different strengths of correlation:
(a) Strong/large linear correlation: When the dots fall close to a straight line;
(b) Weak/small correlation: When the dots fall far from a straight line or when
you can hardly tell that there is correlation;
(c) Moderate/medium correlation: When the pattern of dots is somewhere

between a strong and weak correlation; and
(d) Perfect linear correlation: When all the dots fall exactly on the straight line.

The examples of each correlation strength are shown in Figure 8.6.
Figure 8.6: Examples of different values for linear correlations

Source: Gravetter&Wallnau, 2009
ACTIVITY 8.2
Collect a random sample of 5 to 10 peopleÊs weights and heights. Make

a scatterplot and indicate if you would expect a positive or negative
correlation. Identify the correlation pattern and state whether it is a
strong, moderate or weak correlation.

8.3 THE CORRELATION COEFFICIENT

With the scatterplot, we can have rough ideas on the relationship between two
variables. Nevertheless, it does not tell us the exact figures in the correlation
direction and strength.
Correlation coefficient, which is also known as Pearson correlation, is a measure

of the strength of relationship between two variables (Stat Trek, 2016). According
to Gravetter and Wallnau (2009) and Stat Trek (2016), the Pearson correlation
(also known as Pearson product-moment correlation) is the most common
correlation that measures the degree and direction of the linear association
between variables.
8.3.1 The Pearson Correlation

The symbol for Pearson correlation is recognised as r. Pearson correlation can be
computed by using the formula:
Degree to which X and Y vary together

r 
Degree to which X and Y vary separately
Covariability of X and Y

Variability of X and Y separately
8.3.2 The Sum of Products of Deviations

In order to calculate the Pearson correlation, we need to know the sum of
products of deviation, known as SP. SP is used to measure the amount of
covariability between two variables (Gravetter & Wallnau, 2009). Conceptually,
the product of deviations is the result of multiplying the deviation score of one
variable with the deviation score of another variable (Aron et al., 2009), which
can be written as: (definitional formula)
SP    X  M x  Y  M y 

On the other hand, SP can also be calculated with the computational formula:
SP   XY 
 X Y
n
According to Gravetter and Wallnau (2009), calculation of SP using either

definitional formula or computational formula will arrive at the same result, as
shown in the Table 8.2.
Table 8.2: Example of SP Calculation Using both

Definitional and Computational Formula
(a) Definitional formula
Scores Deviations Products

X Y X Mx Y My (X Mx)(Y My)
2 6 2 6 = -4 6 10 = -4 (-4)(-4) = 16
4 12 4 6 = -2 12 10 = 2 (-2)(2) = - 4
8 8 8 6=2 8 10 = -2 (2)(-2) = - 4
10 14 10 6 = 4 14 10 = 4 (4)(4) = 16
24 = SP
Mx = (2 + 4 + 8 + 10)  4 = 6
My = (6 + 12 + 8 + 14)  4 = 10
(b) Computational formula
X Y XY
2 6 12 SP   XY 
 X Y
n
4 12 48
(24)(40)
8 8 64  264 
4
10 14 140
 24
24 40 264

8.3.3 Calculation of the Pearson Correlation

As noted earlier in the Pearson r formula, SP is used to compute the covariability
of X and Y. Field (2005) states: Covariance measures the intensity of simultaneous
changes between two variables (such as, how much the variables change together).
The variables may vary together (such as, when one variable goes above its mean,
and the other variable also goes above its mean) or differently (such as, when one
variable goes above its mean, but the other variable goes below its mean).
Earlier Subtopics 8.3.1 and 8.3.2 showed that Pearson r is computed by dividing
covariability of X and Y by variability of X and Y separately, where covariability
is the sum of products of deviation scores (SP). With these, the formula for
Pearson correlation can be written as:
r 
Variability of X and Y separately

  X  M  X  M 
X Y
 SS X  SS Y 
SP

 SS X  SSY 
8.3.4 Steps in Computing the Correlation Coefficient

Imagine that a researcher is studying the relationship between the amount of
alcohol consumed and the working memory capacity. The results are recorded in
Table 8.3.
Table 8.3: Amount Milk Consumed and Working Memory Study
Amount of Milk Consumed (Glasses) Items Remembered

6 6
15 0
9 4
8 3
12 1
10 2

Following are the steps in computing the correlation coefficient.
Step 1: Find the deviation score of each variable by (a) computing the mean of
each variable, and then (b) subtract each variableÊs mean from each of
its scores.
E.g., Mx = (6 + 15 + 9 + 8 + 12 + 10)  6 = 10
6 10 = -4
Complete calculation is shown in Table 8.3.

Step 2: Compute the sum of products of deviations for each pair of scores by
multiplying the deviation score of one variable with the deviation score
of the other variable, as shown in the last column of Table 8.3.
E.g., SP = -4  3.5 = -14
Step 3: Obtain the sum of products of deviations by totaling the SP.
From Table 8.3, adding up the SP gives a total of -40.
Step 4: Square each deviation score for each variable.
E.g., (-4)2 = 16
Step 5: Sum up the squared deviation scores for each variable.
E.g., SSx = 16 + 25 + 1 + 4 + 4 + 0 = 50
Step 6: Compute correlation coefficient by using the formula:
SP 28 28 28

r      .82
 SS X  SSY   50  23.5  1175 34.28
Table 8.4 shows the computing of the correlation coefficient for the milk
consumed and working memory study.

Table 8.4: Computing the Correlation Coefficient for

the Milk Consumed and Working Memory Study
Amount of Milk Consumed (X) Items Remembered (Y)

Deviation Deviation
Deviation  Squared Deviation  Squared SP 
 
(X Mx)
X X Mx (X Mx)2 Y Y My (Y My)2
(Y My)
6 -4 16 6 3.5 12.25 -14.0
15 5 25 0 -2.5 6.25 -12.5
9 -1 1 4 1.5 2.25 -1.5
8 -2 4 2 -0.5 0.25 1.0
12 2 4 2 -0.5 0.25 -1.0
10 0 0 1 -1.5 2.25 0
 = 60  = SSx =  = 15  = SSY = =
50 23.5 -28 
M = 10 M = 2.5
8.3.5 Interpreting the Correlation Coefficient

According to Lund and Lund (2013), the Pearson correlation coefficient can range
from +1 to -1, where 0 signifies no correlation between the two variables. As
shown in Subtopic 8.2, the pattern of correlation (such as positive or negative
relationship) is signified by the sign (+ or ).
As you get a value from computing the Pearson correlation coefficient, you will
determine the strength of the correlation as stated earlier in Subtopic 8.2.3. The
closer the value to 1 (positive or negative), the stronger the relationship between
the two variables (Lund & Lund, 2013). Obtaining a value of μ1 indicates a
perfect relationship, that is, all the data scores falls on the line of best fit, and no
data deviates from the line. Examples of different relationships with different
correlation coefficients are shown in the Figure 8.7.
The study on the relationship between alcohol consumed and working memory
capacity shows a correlation coefficient of -0.82. As -0.82 is negative and near -1,
we can say that this study has a very large negative linear correlation.

Figure 8.7: Examples of scatter diagrams and correlation

coefficients for different degrees of linear correlation
Source: Lund & Lund (2013)

SELF-CHECK 8.2
1. Define covariance and SP.
2. Compute SP for the following scores by using both computational

and definitional formula as shown in Subtopic 8.3.2.
Person X Y
A 3 5
B 7 12
C 5 7
D 4 9
E 1 2
3. Calculate the Pearson correlation for the following scores:
Person X Y
A 10 3
B 7 7
C 3 9
D 8 4
8.4 ISSUES IN INTERPRETING THE

CORRELATION COEFFICIENT
Authors, such as, Aron et al. (2009), and Gravetter and Wallnau (2009) identified
a number of conditions that one should bear in mind when interpreting the
correlation coefficient.

8.4.1 The Correlation Coefficient and the

Proportionate Reduction in Error or Proportion
of Variance Accounted For
So far, we have learned how to see the direction and strength of a linear
correlation with correlation coefficient. The bigger the r values (values near to
μ1), the higher the degree of correlation. However, we have to bear in mind that
an r of 0.40 is NOT twice as large as an r of 0.20. In order to compare correlations
with one another, we will use r2 instead of r, that is, we will square the
correlations. You will learn the reasons in Topic 9, under the section of the
proportionate reduction in error.
Looking at the example, a correlation of 0.40 has an r2 of 0.16, whereas a

correlation of 0.20 has an r2 of 0.04. Therefore, a correlation of 0.40 is actually four
times as large as a correlation of 0.20.
8.4.2 Correlation and Causation

According to Gravetter and Wallnau (2009), correlation illustrates a relationship
between two variables. However, people often assume that correlation indicates
a cause-and-effect relationship between the two variables.
Thus, we should be aware that correlation does not explain why and how the
two variables are linked, but is only a pure connection. As stated by Gravetter
and Wallnau (2009),a correlation should not and cannot be interpreted as proof
of a cause-and-effect relationship between the two variables.
8.4.3 Restriction in Range

Another potential mistake in interpreting the correlation is called restriction of
range, which refers to a situation where the values of one or both variables being
correlated is limited or abbreviated (Heiman, 2006). Range restriction further
reduces the accuracy of the correlation coefficient (such as having a smaller
coefficient with restricted range) (Heiman, 2006), and also affects the scoresÊ
validity, reliability, and statistical power (Weber, 2001).
For example, suppose you are interested in finding the relationship between the
IQ and EQ. If you are using college students as your sample, your data may
represent only a limited range of IQ scores, as there are many students with
lower (e.g., below average) IQ scores who may not study up to college level. In

fact, the degrees of correlation may appear to be higher when you obtain a full
range of IQ scores in this study. An example is shown in the Figure 8.8.
Figure 8.8: Example of how full range of X and Y values gives a stronger correlation
compared to the restricted range of scores that gives a near zero correlation
Source:Gravetter&Wallnau, 2009
In brief, one should try to include a wide range of X and Y values (such as greater
numbers of a sample) in a study, be careful in interpreting the results, and not
generalise any correlation further than what is represented by the sample
(Gravetter& Wallnau, 2009).
8.4.4 Influence of Outliers

When there are one or more individual scores that are significantly bigger or
smaller than the other pairs of scores in the research, the direction and strength of
the correlation can be twisted (Aron et al., 2009). These scores with extreme
values compared to the others in the distribution are known as outliers (Aron et
al., 2009).
For instance, as shown by Gravetter and Wallnau (2009), Figure 8.9 (a) shows a
sample of 5 with a correlation of -0.08, which indicates nearly zero correlation
between the two variables. However, when one extreme score is added to the
data set, it shows a correlation of 0.85, which indicates a strong, positive
correlation in the study. Without the outlier, we can say that there is no
relationship between the two variables, but, with the outlier, it turns out that
there is a strong and positive relationship between the two variables. Therefore,
Gravetter and Wallnau (2009) suggested us to look at the scatterplot instead of
simply looking at the numerical values obtained.

Figure 8.9: Influence of outlier example
SELF-CHECK 8.3
1. Define restriction of range and state its effects on the correlation

coefficient.
2. Identify the outlier in the set of scores below and state the
potential problem(s) with regard to correlation.
X Y
14 45
10 36
16 50
11 42
4 72

8.5 CONTROVERSY: WHAT IS A LARGE

CORRELATION?
Long ago, Cohen (1988, as cited in Aron et al., 2009) had defined the large,
moderate, and small correlation, as shown in Table 8.5. According to Cohen, a
large correlation is said to have a correlation that is greater than 0.50.
Nonetheless, Aron et al. (2009) stated that it is hard to obtain correlations that are
larger than 0.04 in many areas of psychology.
Table 8.5: The Size of Correlation
Correlation r
Small About 0.10
Moderate About 0.30
Large About 0.50 or above
Aron et al.(2009), gave an example of their research with the idea that „doing
exciting activities together may cause people to be happier in their marriage‰.
Aron et al. (2009) reported that they have done many true experiments to support
the direction of causality for this idea, but the correlation remained low. This
issue tells them that there are many other factors that can lead to marital
satisfaction, which they did not include in the research or experiment (such as
doing exciting activities together). Hence, Aron et al. (2009) concluded that no
correlation can explain the whole story, and low reliability of psychology
measures may also play an important role in getting a small correlation.
As usual, we must always be cautious when we have a low correlation, noting

that it is irrelevant even though it is statistically significant (Aron et al., 2009).
One of the reasons could be that a small correlation can be statistically significant
when the study takes in a great number of participants (Aron et al., 2009).
Furthermore, Aron et al. (2009) also stated that psychologists tend to see the
correlation size as meaning more of a strength between two variables compared
to the actual scenario.

On the other hand, there are psychologists who think that small correlations can
be important (Aron et al., 2009). For example, we seldom think that customer
satisfaction is affected by factors like environment. If it happens where there are
studies showing a minimal relationship between environment and customer
satisfaction, we are persuaded that the condition of the environment could play a
part in influencing customer satisfaction. In other words, small correlations may
not be relevant but may provide us related ideas or insight.
Last but not least, Cohen (1988) and Thompson (2007) proposed that the
significance of effects found in research should be compared with the effects
reported in previous similar research studies, instead of the CohenÊs conventions
8.6 CORRELATION IN RESEARCH ARTICLES

In research articles, correlation coefficients are often reported in the text of
articles, in tables, or in scatterplots. Correlation results can be reported as: there
was a negative correlation (r = 0.57) between school achievements and
absenteeism. Usually, the result of the correlation is reported together with the
significance of the correlation: r = 0.57, p < 0.05.
In addition, correlations can also be reported with scatterplots or tables.

Scatterplots and tables can be easily prepared by using SPSS. When scatterplots
and tables are created in SPSS, you will just need to copy and paste in your
articles. Correlations tables are often set up in a way that each variable is listed
down on the left and across the top. The correlation figures for each pair of
variables will then be displayed inside the table. This kind of table is also known
as correlation matrix (Aron et al., 2009). Within the correlation matrix, you may
also notice the different significance levels of each pair of variables, by referring
to the asterisks noted in Table 8.6.

Table 8.6: Correlations with Official Scrabble Ratings (Expert Only)
Variable 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
1. Official .178 .116 .173 .202* .021 .128 .227* .224*

Scrabble
rating
2. Gender .318* .094 .265* .104 .181 .220* .242*
3. Current .167 .727* .088 .094 .769* .515*

age
4. Age .355* .233* .094 .501* .058

started
playing
Scrabble
5. Age .096 .112 .386* .121

started
competing
6. Days of .050 .093 .196

year
playing
Scrabble
7. Hours per .134 .377*

day
playing
Scrabble
8. Years of .492**
practice
9. Total
hours
playing
(Years 
Hours)
* p < .05 ** p < .01

ACTIVITY 8.3
Use your 3 main meals daily to compile your data. For each meal, note
its fats and its total calories. Identify if there is any relationship between
the two variables. State if it is a positive, negative or zero correlation.
Discuss the degree of the correlation and calculate the correlation
coefficient.
 Correlation is a statistical procedure that allows us to measure and describe a

relationship between two variables.
 A scatterplot is a graph that shows the location of each pair of X-Y scores in
the data, which allows us to gain some idea of the direction of the
relationship between the two variables in a study.
 There are a few patterns of correlation. Linear correlation occurs when the
dots in the scatterplot follow a straight line; curvilinear correlation occurs
when the dots follow a line pattern other than a simple straight line. When
dots do not follow any kind of line, it shows no correlation.
 In a positive linear relationship, as the X scores increase, the Y scores tend to

increase, whereas in a negative linear relationship, as the X scores increase,
the Y scores tend to decrease.
 A correlation coefficient (also known as Pearson correlation) describes the

direction and strength of the relationship.
 The correlation coefficient can be summarised as the formula:
r 

  X  M  X  M 
X Y
Variability of X and Y separately  SS X  SSY 
 The positive or negative sign of a correlation coefficient tells you the direction
of the linear correlation between the two variables.

 The maximum value of r is +1 or -1, which indicates a perfect linear

correlation.
 Correlation does not tell you the direction of causation.
 Comparisons of the degree linear correlation are considered most accurate in

terms of the correlation coefficient squared (r2), known as proportionate
reduction in error or proportion of variance.
 Range restriction further reduces the accuracy of the correlation coefficient,

and also affects the scoresÊ validity, reliability, and statistical power.
 The results of a correlation can be distorted by extreme combinations of

scores, which are known as outliers.
 Studies suggest that psychologists tend to see the correlation size as meaning
more of a strength between two variables compared to the actual scenario.
Nevertheless, small correlations may not be relevant but may provide us
related ideas or insights.
 Correlation is usually reported in research articles in text with the value r, or

in a table that is known as a correlation matrix.
Correlation coefficient Pearson correlation coefficient

Correlation matrix Positive relationship
Curvilinear relationship Product of deviation scores
Direction of causality Restriction of range
Linear relationship Scatterplot
Negative relationship Strength of a relationship
No correlation Sum of products
Outliers

Heiman, G. W. (2006). Basic statistics for the behavioral science (5th ed.). Boston,
MA: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Stat Trek. (2016). Correlation coefficient. Retrieved from http://stattrek.com/

statistics/correlation.aspx
Weber, D. A. (2001). Restriction of range: The truth about consequences and

corrections. Retrieved from Education Resources Information Center
website: http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED449213.pdf

Topic  Regression
9 and Prediction
LEARNING OUTCOMES
1. Make predictions using regression analysis;
2. Identify regression line and multiple regression;
3. Explain raw score predictions;
4. Justify the controversies when comparing predictors;
5. Identify the limitations of prediction using regression; and
6. Report regression in research articles.
 INTRODUCTION
One of the psychologistÊs jobs is to make informed, and accurate predictions
about things, such as, how much a reading program is likely to help a particular
university student, or how well a teacher will perform in a new teaching job.
Statistical prediction also plays an important role in assisting research
psychologists to understand how outcomes of interest are influenced by various
factors (Aron et al., 2009). For instance, what are the lifestyle factors that predict
dementia in late adulthood? Learning statistical prediction in more detail will
help you to develop greater insight into other statistical topics and will prepare
you for the advance statistical techniques.

152  TOPIC 9 REGRESSION AND PREDICTION
9.1 PREDICTOR (X) AND CRITERION (Y)

In correlation, the direction of variables are not emphasised. For example,
variables with correlation involve how strong a relationship there is between
them, not if one came before the other or vice versa. On the other hand, with
prediction, it can be determined where the variable is from and where it will be
going.The predictor variable is where the prediction begins, whereas the criterion
variable is the destination. In various equations, the predictor variable is labelled
X. The criterion variable islabelled Y. X then predictsY (Aron et al., 2009).
9.2 THE REGRESSION LINE

Psychologists will name prediction as regression in this topic. Regression is going
back to or returning to (Aron et al., 2009). The term regression is used because the
predicted score is closer to the standard deviation of the mean of the criterion
variable. This means that the predicted variable is farther away. This indicates
that there is a return to the mean or average, of the criterion variable. Another
way of explaining the regression line refers to the summary of points to make a
prediction (Goodwin, 2007).
According to Aron et al.,(2009), the regression line serves three purposes:
(a) Helps describe the relationship between the two variables;

(b) Identifies the central tendency of the relation; and
(c) Used for prediction.
9.2.1 Equation for a Linear Relationship

The relationship between X and Y, which is also linear, can be represented by the
formula:
Y = bX + a
Y is the dependent variable (also known as criterion variable).
b is the slope. It determines how much the Y variable will change when X
increases. The direction can be either positive or negative.
X is the independent variable(also known as predictor variable).
a is the Y-intercept. a determines the value of Y when X = 0.

TOPIC 9 REGRESSION AND PREDICTION  153
Let us take an example, using the number of children to predict the mothersÊ
stress levels. Suppose the regression constant a is 2, and regression coefficient b is
1. Hence, to predict the stress of a mother who has 4 children, you use the
formula:
Y = bX + a = 1 (4) + 2 = 6
As you can think, the number of children is not the only factor that predicts a
motherÊs stress level.
To see a step further, we are able to plot the graph with two points because the
two points completely determine a straight line. Nevertheless, it is advisable that
one computes and plots at least three points to get a definite graph (Gravetter &
Wallnau, 2009).
9.2.2 Regression
Regression is the statistical technique for finding the best-fitting straight line. The
straight line created from regression is known as regression line. This line is a
visual representation of how two variables are related (Aron et al., 2009).
9.2.3 Slope of the Regression Line

The angle of the regression line is called the slope. How much or how little the
line changes in the acuteness of the angle indicates what type of relationship
exists between two variables (Glass & Hopkins, 1996). For example, how type of
changes occur on one variable, and its affect has on another variable. One
practical example related to this class involves how the amount of time studying
statistics will have an influence on what type of grade one receives at the end of
the course.
9.2.4 The Intercept of the Regression Line

Intercept or sometimes known as Y intercept, refers to where the regression line
cuts the vertical axis. If the predictor variable is 0, the intercept is the predicted
score of the criterion variable. It comes out that the intercept is the regression
constant. The best baseline number would be 0 (Aron et al., 2009).

SELF-CHECK 9.1
1. Define linear regression line with its functions.
2. Write down the linear regression equation and identify each

symbol.
3. Suppose in a prediction rule, a = -1.32 and b = 6.22. Calculate the

predicted score on the criterion variable if the score on the
predictor variable is:
(a) 2.50;
(b) -1.89; and
(c) 4.89.
9.3 ERROR AND PROPORTIONATE

REDUCTION IN ERROR
How do we compute the correct linear prediction rule? How do we compute the
correct numbers for the regression constant? Finally, how do we find the
regression coefficient, b? Regardless whether we use a formula, a graph, or
express them in words, these two numbers are important and need to be known
to continue. A very important element is then related to reducing error.
Determining a method to have the most accurate regression line is very
important. We need to avoid guessing. For example, different psychologists may
decide on different lines, with different predictions, leading to different outcomes
9.3.1 The Least Squared Error Principle

What does it mean to use the best prediction? This must be defined in order to
proceed. For the regression line, we are referring to the line that comes closest to
the true scores on the criterion variable (Goodwin, 2007). Error occurs when the
prediction ruleÊs predicted score is the actual score on the prediction variable

We want to minimise the error over the whole range of scores in our prediction.
In other words, we look for the smallest sum of errors. Sometimes the error
appears to be positive, where the rule is predicted too low and sometimes they
appear to be negative, where the rule is predicted too high. We wish to avoid the
errors that cancel each other out, that is, having the same amount of positive and
negative errors. We take each amount of error and square it and then we add up
the squared errors. Using squared errors have also various other statistical
advantages over alternative approaches. To evaluate if a prediction rule is good,
we calculate the sum of the squared errors we would make, using that rule (Aron
et al., 2009).
When choosing this linear prediction rule, we use what statisticians call the least
squares criterion. This means, the regression line gives the lowest difference in
sum of squared errors between the actual scores and the predicted scores on the
criterion variable.
9.3.2 Finding a and b for the Least Squares Linear

Prediction Rule
Earlier in this topic, we have learned the formula (Y = bX + a) for a linear
relationship. In this subtopic, we will learn how to calculate the values of
regression constant a and regression coefficient b, which will produce the
smallest possible sum of squared errors.
The formulas for regression constant a and regression coefficient b are as follows:
a  M Y  (b )(M X )
b
  X  M  (Y  M
X y ) 
SS X
a Regression constant
b Regression coefficient
X MX Deviation score for each person on the X variable
Y My Deviation score for each person on the Y variable
 X  M X  (Y  M y ) Product of deviation scores for each person

  X  M  (Y  M
X y )  Sum of products of deviation scores for all the
participants in the study
SS X Sum of squared deviations for the X variable
As you notice from the formulas, regression constant a can be obtained only
when we have the regression coefficient b value. Thus, we have to calculate the
value of b before calculating the value of a.
Steps to find the regression coefficient, b (see Table 9.1 for example):
Step 1: Similar to correlation (see Topic 8), find the deviation scores for each
variable by;
(a) Computing the mean of each variable; and
(b) Subtract each variableÊs mean from each of its scores.
Step 2: Compute the products of deviations for each pair of scores by

multiplying the deviation score of one variable with the deviation score
of the other variable.
Step 3: Compute the sum of products of deviations by totaling all the products
of deviations scores.
Step 4: Square each deviation score for variable X (predictor variable).
Step 5: Sum up the squared deviation scores for variable X (predictor variable).
Step 6: Compute regression coefficient by using the formula:
b
  X  M  (Y  M
X y ) 
SS X

Table 9.1: Calculating the Regression Coefficient for Predicting

Working Memory Capacity from Amount of Milk Consumed
Amount of Milk Consumed (X) Items Remembered (Y)

Deviation
Deviation  Squared Deviation  SP 

X X ă Mx (X ă Mx)2 Y Y ă My (X ă Mx) (Y ă My)
6 -4 16 6 3.5 -14.0
15 5 25 0 -2.5 -12.5
9 -1 1 4 1.5 -1.5
8 -2 4 2 -0.5 1.0
12 2 4 2 -0.5 -1.0
10 0 0 1 -1.5 0
 = 60  = SSx =  = 15  = -28
50 
Mx = 10 My = 2.5
 X M
  X  (Y  M y ) 28
b   0.56
SS 50
X
Steps to find the regression constant, a:
Step 1: Compute regression constant by using the formula.
a = My ă (b)( Mx)
a = 2.5 ă (-.56)(10) = 8.1
Lastly, if we would like to predict the working memory capacity of a

person who has consumed 3 glasses of milk beverage, we can use the
formula:
Y = bX + a
Y= (-.56)(3) + 8.1 = 6.42

SELF-CHECK 9.2
1. Define least squared error principle.
2. Write down the formula for the regression coefficient and

regression constant. Define each of the symbols.
3. Compute the linear prediction rule for predicting Y scores from X

scores based on the numbers below.
X Y
4 6
6 8
7 3
3 7
9.4 PREDICTION USING Z SCORES

One way of expressing prediction,Y to X for example, occurs when X and Y are
expressed as z scores. A z score is the number of standard deviations the score is
above the mean or below the mean (Aron et al., 2009). If the actual score is above
the mean, the z score is positive. If the actual score is below the mean, the z score
is negative (Aron et al., 2009).
9.4.1 Raw Score Prediction Using the Z Score

Prediction Model (The Standardised Regression
Coefficient)
Standardised coefficient is used when the independent variable is important,
where variables are compared with the strength (Menard, 2004). Standardised
data is normalised with z scores, where mean is 1 and standard deviation is 0.
This relationship predicts that when one standard deviation increases on Y
(dependent), the independent (X) variable increases or decreases depending on
the  (Beta) coefficient value. Standardised data does not focus on the constant,
as standardised coefficient is not influenced by constant value (Menard, 2004).

Standardised regression coefficient can be obtained by changing a raw score to a

z score by using the formula:
SS X
  (b )
SS Y
For example, referring back to the milk and memory example shown in Table 9.1,
we can compute the standardised regression coefficient by using this formula. As
it does not include the calculation of the value SSY, we may calculate by squaring
each deviation score (Y ă MY) and sum up the resulting values. Therefore, the
calculation can be seen as:
SSY = 3.52 + (-2.5)2 + 1.52 +(-.5)2+ (-.5)2+ (-1.5)2 = 23.5
SS X 50 7.07
  (b )  ( .56)  ( .56)  0.82
SS Y 23.5 4.85
From this calculation, it shows us that for every standard deviation increase in
milk consumed, the predicted level of items remembered decreases by 0.82
standard deviations. With this standardised regression coefficient () value, you
could compare it with other studiesÊ  values.
9.4.2 Raw Score Prediction Using the Direct Raw

Score Prediction Model (The Unstandardised
Regression Coefficient)
Unstandardised coefficient is used when there is a different unit (for example,
constant variable) used in the statistical analysis (Menard, 2004). For example,
suppose a researcher wants to find out whether educational attainment
(independent variable) can affect oneÊs job performance (dependent variable).
These independent variable and dependent variable can be further influenced by
a constant variable (such as job experience) in an unstandardised coefficient. In
brief, unstandardised coefficient can be influenced by constant value.
As you may notice from the example shown in Table 9.1, the  value ( = -0.82) is
the same as the r value (r = -0.82) in Table 8.4. According to Aron et al. (2009), one
will get different  and r values when scores computed from more than one
predictor variables are used to predict the scores on a criterion variable.

SELF-CHECK 9.3
1. Define and differentiate between standardised and

unstandardised regression coefficient.
2. State the formula for standardised regression coefficient and

define each symbol.
3. Calculate the standardised regression coefficient when b = -1.32,

SSX = 3.12, and SSY = 6.89.
ACTIVITY 9.1
From what you have learned about prediction so far, discuss with your
tutor in the forum on the issues that one may encounter in prediction,
including the standardised regression coefficient and hypothesis
testing.
9.5 MULTIPLE REGRESSION

Up to now, we have discussed predicting oneÊs score on a criterion variable by
using a single predictor variable, which we called bivariate (i.e., two variables)
prediction or bivariate regression.
Now, we would learn how to use more predictor variables. For instance, when
predicting occupational stress, we can examine the number of tasks assigned to a
person. Let us say we also know the number of tasks handled by the person
previously. Psychologist might be able to predict the personÊs occupational stress
more precisely by having this information. Multiple correlations can be made
when making the determination of the relationship between two or more
predictor variables and the criterion variable. Making these types of predictions
is called multiple regression (Aron et al., 2009).

9.5.1 Multiple Regression Prediction Rules

Multiple regression linear prediction rule formula is similar to the linear
regression prediction rule formula. The only difference is that multiple regression
includes more variables.
Multiple regression linear prediction rule formula for five predictor variables is
(Aron et al., 2009):
Y = a + (b1)(X1) + (b2)(X2) + (b3)(X3) + (b4)(X4) + (b5)(X5)
Y Predicted score on the criterion variable

a Regression constant
b1, b2, b3, b4, b5 Regression coefficient for the first, second, third, fourth,
and fifth predictor variables
X1, X2, X3, X4, X5 The personÊs scores on the first, second, third, fourth, and
fifth predictor variables
For example, a researcher is trying to predict if an employeeÊs productivity,

professionalism and motivation will affect his or her work quality. The multiple
regression linear prediction rule might be:
Predicted work quality = 2.5 + (0.76)(productivity) + (0.46)(professionalism)

+ (0.86)(motivation)
Let us say the employee rated his productivity as 8, professionalism as 7 and

motivation as 5. His predicted work quality would be:
Predicted work quality = 2.5 + (0.76)(8) + (0.46)(7) + (0.86)(5)

= 16.1

9.5.2 Multiple Regression vs. Bivariate Regression

Important differences exist between multiple regression and bivariate prediction.
In a normal bivariate prediction, correlation coefficient is similar to the
standardised regression coefficient. However, in multiple regression, the normal
correlation coefficient r of that predictor with the criterion variable is different
from the standardised regression coefficient ß for each predictor variable (Glass
& Hopkins, 1996).
In multiple regression, the relationship between the criterion variable and all the
predictor variables taken together is known as the multiple correlation coefficient
R. Because of the overlapping predictor variables, the multiple correlation is
usually smaller than the sum of the individual correlation coefficients. The
squared multiple correlation, R2, tells us how much the proportions of the
variance in independent variables are explained by the dependent variable(Aron
et al., 2009).
As the name „multiple‰ states, multiple regression has several possible

hypothesis tests (Glass & Hopkins, 1996). We can use multiple regression to test
independent variable and dependant variable as a whole (hypothesis testing).
Meanwhile, we can test the independent variable and dependant variable
individually by using t-test (Aron et al., 2009). Psychologists usually pay less
attention to this kind of test because the actual value of constant variable in
regression analysis carries less weightage in psychological research.
9.6 LIMITATION OF REGRESSION

(PREDICTION)
Similar to correlation, limitations apply to prediction (Glass & Hopkins, 1996),
where regression coefficients values will be closer to 0 with curvilinear
correlation, restriction of range, unreliable measures, or the presence of outliers.
In addition, regression will not tell us the direction of causations. Furthermore, it
is common for you to notice that the psychologists overlook these limitations
when it comes to complex regression results (Aron et al., 2009).

SELF-CHECK 9.4
1. In your own words, define multiple regression.
2. Write a multiple regression linear prediction rule formula with

four predictor variables and define each symbol.
3. State the differences between multiple regression and bivariate

prediction.
4. Regression constant = 2.19

First variable regression coefficient = -3.16
Second variable regression coefficient = 0.99
Compute the predicted score on the criterion variable for a person

with a score of 0.15 for the first predictor variable and a score of
5.50 on the second predictor variable.
9.7 CONTROVERSY: COMPARING PREDICTORS

To recall an earlier part in this topic, we learned that the standardised regression
coefficient is the best way to compare a regression coefficient within different
types of studies (Goodwin, 2007).The comparison between the standardised
regression coefficients ßs and unstandardised regression coefficients bs can be
seen through the sizes of regression coefficients for each of several predictor
variables in a multiple regression.The strength between each predicator variable
towards the criterion variable can be determine by b value (Aron et al., 2009).
Nonetheless, there is a continuing debate on the usage of standardised regression
coefficients ßs or the correlation coefficients rs in determining the importance of
the predictor variables (Aron et al., 2009).
A regression coefficient tells us on how one predictor variable plays a part in the
prediction more than the other predictors (Goodwin, 2007). For example, if the
predictors are compared, the values for the standardised regression coefficients
ßs are 0.283, 0.467, -0.267. Meanwhile, for the rs values the predictors are 0.535,
0.108, 0.788. Then when reporting ßs, it can be said that the second predictor is
the most important. Next, for the rs, it shows that the third predictor is the most
important.
Despite years of considering different approaches to this problem, it remains

controversial. Many experts have concluded and recommended researchers to
use both the rs and the ßs (Aron et al., 2009).

9.8 PREDICTION IN RESEARCH ARTICLES

It is rare to report bivariate linear regression and simple correlations. However,
bivariate linear regression will be reported as there are more than one group of
predictors, and the researcher wants to describe the differences between the
predictor variables (Aron et al., 2009).
On the other hand, it is common to see the report of multiple regression results in
research articles. According to Aron et al. (2009), it is usually reported in table
form, together with the report of regression coefficients and overall
proportionate reduction in error. Table 9.2 showed an example of a regression
table written in APA 6th edition format.
Table 9.2: Predictors of Self-reported Moral Behaviour
Self-reported Moral Behaviour

Model 2
Variable Model 1   95% CI
Contant 3.192** 2.99** [2.37, 3.62]
Gender 0.18* 0.17 [-0.00, 0.33]
Age -0.06 -0.05 [-0.14, 0.03]
Social desirability -0.08** -0.08** [-0.10, -0.05]
bias
Moral identify -0.17** -0.16** [-0.26, -0.06]
internalisation
Moral identify 0.07* 0.06 [-0.01, 0.12]
symbolisation
Perceptual moral 0.07* [0.00, 0.13]
attentiveness
Relective moral -0.01 [-0.08, 0.06]
attentiveness
R2 .29 .31
F 19.07** 14.46**
R2 .01
F 2.39
Note: N = 242. CI = confidence interval. Adapted from „Moral Attentiveness: Who Pays
Attention to the Moral Aspects of Life?‰ by S. J Reynolds, 2008. Journal of Applied
Psychology, 93. p. 1035. Copyright 2008.
* p < .05, ** p < .01.
Source: American Psychological Association, 2009

Furthermore, in an example taken from Publication Manual of the American

Psychological Association (2009), multiple regression analysis can be reported in
a research article as:
High-school GPA statistically predicted college mathematics performance,

R2 = 0.12, F (1, 148) = 20.18, p < 0.001, 95% CI [0.02, 0.22]. The four-subtest
battery added to this prediction, R2= 0.21, R2 = 0.09, F(4, 144) = 3.56,
p = 0.004, 95% CI [0.10, 0.32]. Most important, when the two preceding
variables were statistically accounted for, the college mathematics placement
examination also explained unique variance in students' college mathematics
performance, R2 = 0.25, R2 = 0.04, F(1, 143) = 7.63, p = 0.006, 95% CI [0.13,
0.37].
 Standardised coefficient is used when the independent variable is important,

where variables are compared with the strength. Unstandardised coefficient
is used when there is a different unit (for example, constant variable) used in
the statistical analysis.
 A z score is the number of standard deviations the score is above the mean or
below the mean.
 Prediction, often called regression, involves making predictions from scores

on a criterion variable based on scores on a predictor variable.
 Regression is the statistical techniques for finding the best-fitting straight line,
which is known as the regression line.
 The regression line serves 3 purposes:
 Helps describe the relationship between the two variables;
 Identifies the central tendency of the relation; and
 Used for prediction.
 The relationship between X and Y, which is also linear, can be represented by

the formula: Y = a + (b)(X).

 Best prediction refers to the line that comes closest to the true scores on the
criterion variable.
 Error occurs when the predictions ruleÊs predicted score is the actual score on
the prediction variable. We want to minimise the errors over the whole range
of scores in our prediction.
 Multiple regression is defined as determining relationship between two or

more predictor variables and the criterion variable through multiple
correlations. In multiple regression, multiple correlation coefficient, R, is
known as the relationship between the criterion variable and all the predictor
variables. Meanwhile, squared multiple correlation, R2, explains how the
ratio of the variance in independent variables are related to the dependent
variable.
 Regression shares the similar limitations as correlation, in which curvilinear

correlation, restriction of range, unreliable measures, or the presence of
outliers can affect regression coefficients values.
 Bivariate linear regression results are seldom reported directly in research

articles. Multiple regression results are usually reported in table form,
together with the report of regression coefficients and overall proportionate
reduction in error, such as, R2 = 0.12, F(1, 148) = 20.18, p < 0.001, 95% CI [0.02,
0.22].
Bivariate prediction Multiple regression

Criterion variable (Y) Predictor variable (X)
Error Regression coefficient (b)
Intercept Regression constant (a)
Linear prediction rule Regression line
Multiple correlation Slope
Multiple correlation coefficient (R) Standardised regression coefficient ()

American Psychological Association (2009). Publication manual of the American

Psychological Association (6th ed.) Washington, DC: American Psychological
Association.
Glass, G. V. & Hopkins, K.D. (1996). Statistical methods in education and

psychology, (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Goodwin, C. J. (2007). Research methods in psychology: Methods and design (5th

ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Gravetter, E. J., & Wallnau, L. B. (2009). Statistics for behavioral sciences (8th
ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Menard, S. (2004). Six approaches to calculating standardized logistic regression

coefficients. The American Statistician, 58(3), 218-223. Retrieved from
http://www.jstor.org/stable/27643560

Topic  Making Sense
10 of Statistical
Procedure
LEARNING OUTCOMES
1. List various advance statistical procedures;
2. Differentiate stepwise and hierarchical multiple regression;
3. Explain partial correlation;
4. Identify different types of reliability;
5. Describe factor analysis;
6. Define different methods in causal modelling;
7. Identify independent and dependent variables;
8. Differentiate ANCOVA, MANOVA, and MANCOVA; and
9. Recognise various advanced statistical procedures used in research
articles.
 INTRODUCTION
In this topic, you are going to learn some advanced statistical techniques, which
aim to give you some general idea of any statistical analysis in a research article.
Let us begin with an understanding of what you have learned so far. The main
part of the upcoming topic turns to a view of what lies ahead, in the future, as
you study more of the research on the basis of psychology. We will show you
how to make sense of the advance statistical procedures that are widely used in
psychology. Most research you will read as a learner of psychology uses one or
more methods that we have covered in this statistics course. It is also important

TOPIC 10 MAKING SENSE OF STATISTICAL PROCEDURE  169
to know that you will be exposed to procedures that you have not learned, until
you take advanced statistic courses.
ACTIVITY 10.1
Before reading this topic, let us get some idea on carrying out a research.
Imagine that you are a researcher in the psychology field, and interested
to carry out a research. Identify the questions that you would ask
yourself in order to conduct a research and discuss them with your tutor
and coursemates. For example, you may discuss on your research idea or
title, steps to conduct a research, the details of your research (for
example, hypothesis, variables involved, measurement methods), and
other things.
10.1 BRIEF REVIEW OF MULTIPLE

REGRESSION
To recap, multiple regression is a logical extension of least squares to situations
in which there are several predictors (Field, 2009). Regression explores the
relationships between the variables. In simple English, regression uses the
framework of the methodology to get a yes or no answer for a hypothetical
question, such as, is there significant relationship(s) between variable Y and one
or more predictors (Field, 2009).
Before running multiple regression analysis, we need to make sure that all
variables have a normal distribution. Distribution of variables that are not
normal (i.e., highly skewed or kurtosis variables or variables of substantial
outliers) can affect the relationship and the significance of the test (Sekaran,
2003). Correlation coefficient r shows strength between two variables, but it
cannot explain the differences in the dependent variables when the dependent
variable has been theorised to influence it at the same time (Sekaran, 2003). When
the variables jointly regress on the dependent variable, explaining the differences
among the individual correlations would fall on the multiple correlation. In other
words, multiple regression analysis will be the best method to assess the
significant relationships between independent variables and a dependent
variable.

170  TOPIC 10 MAKING SENSE OF STATISTICAL PROCEDURE
10.1.1 Stepwise Multiple Regression

As the name „step‰ implies, stepwise multiple regression computes regression
step by step. As stated by Leary (2001), stepwise multiple regression analysis
develops a regression equation by including the predictor variables one at a time.
In the first stage, the predictor variable that is believed to have the best
correlation with a criterion variable is included in the equation. Then, in the
second step, the next remaining predictor variable with the highest correlation
with the outcome variable (provided that the initial predictor variable is already
in the equation) is added. Method like this (i.e., adding predictor variables one-
by-one) is known as forward method (Field, 2009). North Carolina State
University (n.d.) states that the second step will be repeated until all predicted
variables are inserted, or when R2 stops increasing with the addition of
remaining predictor variables.
In other words, Leary (2001) explained that stepwise regression analysis will stop
when:
(a) All the predictor variables are inserted in the equation, as each of them
make a unique contribution in predicting the outcome; or
(b) No predictor variable can uniquely predict any remaining variance in the
criterion variable.
In contrast, stepwise multiple regression backward method will be done the

other way round wherein all variables will be included in the beginning, and the
predictor variables that make the smallest contribution will be dropped one-by-
one until it makes a significant difference in R2 (North Carolina State University,
n.d.).
For example, let us say a researcher is predicting work stress from relationship
with colleagues, job complexity, university or college CGPA, and job ambiguity,
with the following results:
Correlation with work stress (fictional data):
Relationship with colleagues 0.58

Job complexity 0.79
University/college CGPA 0.21
Job ambiguity 0.62
* suppose job complexity is highly correlated with job ambiguity with r = 0.87

In the example, the researcher will enter job complexity in the equation as the
first step as job complexity has the highest correlation among the predictor
variables, which justifies the largest amount of variance in work stress. Next in
step 2, relationship with colleagues will be entered into the equation. Job
ambiguity is not included because it is highly correlated with job complexity. As
job complexity has justified the largest amount of variance in work stress that job
ambiguity can predict, job ambiguity then becomes a useless predictor. Thus, we
would include the next remaining variable that has the highest correlation, which
is the relationship with colleagues. After that, university/college CGPA will not
be entered into the equation because it does not enhance the prediction of work
stress. In the end of this example, only two predictor variables (i.e., job
complexity, and relationship with colleagues) are included in the regression
equation.
10.1.2 Hierarchical Multiple Regression

Unlike stepwise regression, the order of the predictor variables to be entered into
the equation relies on the researcher. Researchers would decide the sequence
based on their research hypothesis with reference to past research or experiment
(Field, 2009). As Field (2009) explained, the known or important predictor
variables have to be entered first before adding other predictors.
After that, the new predictor variables can be included into the equation as
follows:
(a) All together;
(b) One-by-one; or
(c) Hierarchically (enter new predictors based on its importance).
According to Leary (2001), with hierarchical multiple regression, researchers can

include the predictor variables accordingly, and thus allow the researcher to
remove (statistically) the predictor variables that are not contributing to the
unique variance in the outcome. Therefore, hierarchical multiple regression is
said to be a versatile analysis which is commonly used to remove confounding
variables, and to test the mediational hypotheses (Leary, 2001).
For example, when we know that a depressed person is less likely to socialise
with others. However, we cannot conclude that depression leads to social
withdrawal, as it can be confused with the presence of stigma. At this point,
hierarchical regression analysis can be used to partial out the variable that is not
contributing to depression. First, researchers may enter the presence of stigma as

a predictor of social withdrawal.With this, the relationship between the presence

of stigma and social withdrawal would be partialed out. Then, the researcher will
add depression as a predictor that predicts social withdrawal above and beyond
the presence of stigma (i.e., presence of stigma as constant variable). If the
relationship between depression and social withdrawal is not affected by the
presence of stigma, then it can be concluded that the depression is not
confounded by the presence of stigma. On the other hand, if depression is not
influenced by social withdrawal when the data is run together with presence of
stigma, it tells us that the relationship between depression and social withdrawal
is influenced by the presence of stigma.
10.2 PARTIAL CORRELATION

According to Aron et al. (2009), partial correlation is broadly used in various
applied psychology fields, such as, social, developmental, clinical, and
personality. To define, partial correlation is the amount of relationship between
two variables, and the influences between them (Aron et al., 2009). In other
words, partial correlation is to check the relationship between the dependent
variable and independent variables. For example, a researcher wants to study
how a workerÊs attitude is associated with work productivity. Nevertheless, the
researcher realises that a workerÊs attitude and work productivity might be
influenced by the superiorÊs relationship with the worker. Therefore, including
only the correlation between workerÊs attitude and work productivity would be
misleading, as the researcher is examining the relationship between workersÊ
attitude and work productivity by simply assuming they have a good
relationship with their superior. Simply put, the researcher wants somehow to
remove the influence of the superiorÊs relationship with the worker from the
relation between workerÊs attitude and work productivity.
10.3 RELIABILITY
Reliability refers to the measurement of consistency or regularity (Aron et al.,
2009). Put it another way, reliability of measure occurs when the respondents
answer the questionnaire in the same manner (i.e., same result) despite the
numbers administrated. On the other hand, if the answer varies, it shows that the
reliability of the question is not achieved. According to Nunally (1981), for this
reliability test, the Cronbach alpha value should be more than 0.7 to achieve
reliability of a question. Meanwhile, Sekaran (2006) stated that a reliable test
should have a Cronbach alpha value that is more than 0.6.

10.3.1 Test-retest Reliability

Test-retest reliability is achieved by testing the same group of people twice. It
looks into the correlation between scores from the two testing (Aron et al., 2009).
Nonetheless, test-retest reliability is often said to be inappropriate or not practical
(see Figure 10.1). For instance, we cannot use this approach when we are
administering intelligence test due to practice effect. Participants may get a better
result as they get to „practice‰ the test. Hence, it is not suitable to use this
approach if taking a test once would affect the second test (Aron et al., 2009).
Figure 10.1: Test-retest reliability

Source: Trochim, 2006
10.3.2 Split-half Reliability

Split-half reliability is a type of internal consistency reliability. In this approach,
all the items in a test are divided into two „sets‰ (see Figure 10.2). This entire test
is then administered to a group of people, and the total score for each „set‰ will
be computed. After that, the split-half reliability can be obtained by examining
the correlation between the two total „set‰ scores (Trochim, 2006).

Figure 10.2: Split-half reliability

10.3.3 Cronbach’s Alpha ()

As stated by Aron et al. (2009) and Trochim (2006), one may face difficulties
deciding how to split the halves, and how many times they need to split halves
and recompute. Without proper management, it could give us a correlation that
is too low or too high.
CronbachÊs alpha is mathematically equivalent to the average of all possible split-

half correlations (Trochim, 2006). As CronbachÊs alpha also shows the inter-
relatedness of the items within the test, we call it as measuring the internal
consistency reliability. Internal consistency reliability looks into the extent to
which all the items in a test measure the same concept (Tavakol & Dennick,
2011). According to Aron et al. (2009), a good measure in psychology generally
should have a CronbachÊs alpha of at least 0.60 and if possible, closer to 0.90.
According to George and Mallery (2003), a commonly accepted rule of thumb for
describing internal consistency is as in the Table 10.1. A high value of reliability
means less error from the measurement tool, thus, making the measurement
more accurate and reliable. This is usually observed at the value rate of not less
than 0.60.

Table 10.1: CronbachÊs Alpha
CronbachÊs Alpha Internal Consistency

  0.9 Excellent
0.9 >   0.8 Good
0.8 >   0.7 Acceptable
0.7 >   0.6 Questionable
0.6 >   0.5 Poor
0.5 >  Unacceptable
Source: CronbachÊs Alpha and Internal consistency (George & Mallery, 2003)
10.3.4 Inter-rater Reliability

Inter-rater reliability (also known as inter-judge reliability or inter-observer
reliability) looks at how similar the ratings of one rater is to the other rater(s) on
each participantÊs behaviours or materials (Aron et al., 2009). Inter-rater
reliability is important when we use humans as our measurement procedure
(e.g., behavioural observation, materials coding) because the measurement can be
subjective according to each rater. As stated by Trochim (2006), people do make
mistakes, people get tired with repetitive tasks, and people are easily distracted.
Therefore, inter-rater reliability is important to make sure that the results are
reliable and consistent. Figure 10.3 illustrates the inter-rater reliability.
Figure 10.3: Inter-rater reliability


SELF-CHECK 10.1
1. Define partial correlation.
2. How does partial correlation assist in identifying the causality

direction in a correlational study?
3. Define different types of reliability with examples.
4. How is CrobanchÊs alpha connected with split-half reliability?
10.4 FACTOR ANALYSIS

Factor analysis is a type of statistical procedure that is used when there are many
variables to be measured in a research. Factor analysis helps to examine if the
relationships pattern between all the variables in a study can be explained by any
unobserved variables (Aron et al., 2009). This kind of unobservable variables is
called latent variables, which is also known as the „factors‰ (Field, 2011). In other
words, the main idea of factor analysis is that a number of observed variables
show comparable patterns of responses because they are related with common
factors that cannot be measured directly (Rahn, 2016).
For example, suppose a researcher is interested in determining „burnout‰ among

top management of company X. We know that it is impossible to measure
„burnout‰ directly as there are quite a number of facets, such as, stress level,
personalities, relationship with supervisor, task difficulty level, and motivation.
Therefore, what the researcher can do, is to measure „burnout‰ by looking into
different facets of burnout and to see if these different facets are driven by the
same underlying variable-burnout (Field, 2011). This can be summarised with the
Common Factor Model showed in Figure 10.4, which suggests that the
observable variables (measure 1 to measure 5) are influenced by unobservable
common factors (factor 1 and factor 2), and unobservable unique factors (E1 to
E5) (DeCoster, 1998).

Figure 10.4: Common factor model

Source: DeCoster, 1998
To discuss in greater detail, the strength of the connection between each factor
and each measure differs, as one factor may have more influence on one measure
than the others (DeCoster, 1998). In factor analysis, the measures that have high
correlation (high factor loading) are likely to be influenced by the same factors
and vice versa (DeCoster, 1998).
For instance, a researcher comes out with a questionnaire to assess managerial

position workersÊ burnout by focusing on three categories: task difficulty level,
personality, and stress level. The results are shown in Table 10.2.
Table 10.2: Factor Analysis Loadings for Burnout
Variable Factor 1 Factor 2 Factor 3

Question 1 0.253 0.159 -0.102
Question 2 0.812 0.225 0.117
Question 3 0.768 0.778 0.335
Question 4 0.876 0.290 0.482
Question 5 -0.263 0.878 0.779
Referring to the Table 10.1, Question 4 has the highest loadings on Factor 1. To
put it in other way, Factor 1 affects Question 4 the most as it has the highest
loadings, followed by Question 2 and 3. Similarly, Question 5 and 3 have the
most influence on Factor 2, while Factor 3 affects Question 5 the most.

According to Aron et al. (2009), factor loadings can be ranged from -1 to +1. The
loadings close to 1 denote a perfect (negative or positive) correlation with the
factor, loadings close to 0 suggest a weak influence of factor on the variable.
Therefore, a researcher would always try to get loadings close to 1. As stated by
Aron et al. (2009), psychologists often consider a variable to contribute
meaningfully to a factor only if it has a loading at least 0.30.
10.5 CAUSAL MODELLING

Aron and his colleagues (2009) stated that causal modelling methods are broadly
applied in the psychology field. Compared to factor analysis, causal modelling
shares a similarity, where both are used when the research involves measuring a
group of people on various variables. In contrast, causal modelling does not look
only at the correlation pattern between variables, but also to see the causal
relations between variables which might match certain theories (Aron et al.,
2009).
In this subtopic, we are going to discuss three methods of causal modelling,

which are path analysis, mediational analysis, and structural equation modelling.
10.5.1 Path Analysis

Path analysis is considered an older method in statistics but remains popular
nowadays. It is also known as ordinary path analysis (Aron et al., 2009).
According to Wuensch (2012), path analysis was developed by Sewall Wright to
examine if a group of variables (non-experimental data) predicts a specific causal
model.
Path analysis is stated to be somewhat similar to regression. In fact, Garson

(2004) explained that path analysis is an extension of the regression model, used
to test the fit of the correlation matrix against two or more causal models which
are being compared by the researcher.To put it another way, regression gives us
the details of the correlation between all the variables without taking away any
insignificant variable, but path analysis shows us the significant relationships
between the variables and „eliminate‰ the insignificant variables, which may
further lead to a new model of the theory.

In path analysis, we use arrows or paths in path diagrams to identify and connect
the variables based on the theoretically based causal relationships that we would
like to test (Aron et al., 2009). According to Stage, Carter and Nora (2004), a
single-headed arrow points from cause to effect. A double-headed, curved arrow
indicates that variables are merely correlated; no causal relations are assumed.
Aron and his colleagues (2009) further stated that if the path diagram is a correct
description of the causal relationship among the variables, the path coefficient
tells you how much of a standard deviation change on the variable at the end of
the arrow is produced by a one standard deviation change in the predictor
variable at the start of the arrow.
Looking at the example in Figure 10.6, imagine that the research was aiming to
test a theory about what causes children to achieve in education. As shown in
Figure 10.6, we can see the cause-and-effect relationships pattern with path
coefficients among the variables. For instance, by looking at the arrows in the
path diagram, we get to know that parentÊs income is predicted by parentÊs age,
which in turn is not predicted to influence any other variable in the model (i.e.,
no arrows or paths from parentÊs income to any other variable). Nevertheless,
parentÊs education level is predicted to have influence on the childrenÊs
motivation in learning, which is one of the predicted causes of childrenÊs
intelligence, which in turn is predicted to affect childrenÊs educational
attainment.
As you probably noticed in the path diagram in Figure 10.5, all paths are
indicated withthe levels of significance by asterisks, as well, as path coefficients
that indicate the direction and degree of the predicted effects. Although path
diagrams show only the paths that are significant, it does not mean that the
researcher only tested these variables. In fact, the researcher tested all variables,
but include only paths that were significant in the diagram (Aron et al., 2009).
This is what we said earlier that a new model is developed via path analysis.

Figure 10.5: Significant pathways emerging in path analyses

predicting childrenÊs educational attainment (fictional data)
10.5.2 Mediational Analysis

Mediational analysis is a type of path analysis that examine if a recognised causal
relationship between two variables is intervened by another variable, which we
call the mediator variable (M) (Aron et al., 2009). In general, the mediational
model looks like the Figure 10.6.
Figure 10.6: Example of Mediational Relationship Diagram

Source:Yuan, Tan, Huang & Zou, 2014

Referring to Figure 10.6, it provides information that:
(a) Emotional intelligence (X) significantly predicts perceived general health

(Y).
There would be nothing to mediate if there is no causal relationship.
(b) Emotional intelligence (X) significantly predicts job satisfaction (M).

M could not be part of the causal path (from X to Y) if X does not predict M.
(c) Job satisfaction (M) predicts perceived general health (Y).

M could not be part of the causal path (from X to Y) if M does not predict Y.
It is essential to include X as predictor so that we are certain that there is no
causal relationship between M and Y (but between X and Y).
(d) Job satisfaction (M) is fully mediating or partially mediating the effect of
emotional intelligence (X) and perceived general health (Y).
(i) Fully mediating is said to be happened when M is taken into account

in the causal relationship, where M is included as a predictor and the
initial significant prediction falls to non-significance.
(ii) If the initial significant prediction by X stays significant, but becomes

weaker when M is included as a predictor of Y, this is described as
partially mediating. In other words, M explains some, but not all, of
the effects of X on Y (Aron et al., 2009).
Here is an example research with Figure 10.7 that was conducted by Smorti,
Cappelli, Guarnieri, Bergesio and Perfetto (2014), to show you how mediational
analysis is written or described in a research article.
The mediation regression analyses revealed that NYHA (New York Heart
Association) class positively predicted depressive symptom [ = 0.62; p < 0.001]
and negatively predicted avoidance [ = -0.68; p < .001]. Next, avoidance
negatively predicted depressive symptoms above and beyond NYHA class
[ = 0.52; p < 0.005]. When controlling for avoidance, the effect of NYHA class
on depressive symptoms was not significant [ = 0.25; n.s.]. The 34% of the total
variance in depression is explained by the indirect effect. A full mediation was
supported [z = 2.5, p < 0.01].

Figure 10.7: Mediation model for social support seeking

Source: Smorti et al., 2014
10.5.3 Structural Equation Modelling

Aron and his colleagues (2009) defined structural equation modelling as a
complicated version of path analysis. It incorporates paths with underlying,
unmeasured, theoretical variables, allows a kind of significance test, and
provides measures of fit index (i.e., measures of how well the sampleÊs
correlation pattern corresponds to the hypothesised causal pattern among the
variables).
As the definition shows, there are a few advantages of having structural equation
modelling in a research (Aron et al., 2009):
(a) Provides Us the Measure of Fit

According to Aron et al. (2009), for most of the fit indexes, a good fit often
presents a fit that is similar to or greater than 0.90 (where the maximum is
1.00 normally). However, RMSEA (root mean square error of
approximation) fit index works the other way round, where the smaller
RMSEA indicates the better fit (that is, to be considered a good fit, it must
have a fit below 0.10; and to be considered as very good fit, it should have a
fit below 0.05).
(b) Allows Us to Do a Kind of Significance Test

This kind of significance test measures how well the null hypothesis (i.e.,
hypothesis that the researcher tries to reject or disprove) fits in the theory.
As Aron and his colleagues (2009) stated, the researcher is looking for a
non-significant result in this significance test, in order to prove a theory.

(c) Involves Latent Variable

Similar to the factor in factor analysis, latent variable combines the
measured variables and uses what is common among the variables. For
instance, socioeconomic status (SES) as a latent variable. In this, researcher
tries to estimate with several measured variables, such as, occupation,
financial income, and education background, instead of using only one of
these variables, as none of the variables is a very good substitute for SES by
itself.
As shown in the Figure 10.8, the measured variables are typically presented in
boxes, while the latent variables are shown in circles or ovals (Aron et al., 2009).
From the figure, you might notice:
(a) The Arrows Go from the Latent Variables (in Circles) to the Measured
Variables (in Boxes)
The idea is that the latent variable is the underlying cause of the measured
variables, the measured variables being the best we can do to get the true
latent variable.
(b) All Arrows are between Latent Variables

Measured variables can turn into latent variables, based on cause-and-effect
relationships.
(c) Short Arrows that Come from Nowhere

Short arrows show us that there are errors (other unmeasured causes)
influencing the variable. As mentioned by Aron and his colleagues (2009), a
researcher might abandon the error arrows in published articles, in order to
keep the figure simple.

Figure 10.8: An example of structural equation model path diagram

Source: Hyland, Shevlin, Adamson &Boduszek, 2014

10.5.4 Limitations of Causal Modelling

It might seem causal modelling is wonderful. Nonetheless, we have to remember
that no matter how wonderful a method is, the ideas are proposed by the
researcher. In other words, whilst one may perfectly predict the paths and have
an exceptional fit structural equation model, it also says that the possibility of
other causal patterns could operate equally well or even better. Researchers
might miss out any theories that are relevant or reasonable to the research that
they conducted(Aron et al., 2009).
Besides that, as what we discussed so far, causal modelling rely on the

correlations concept. As discussed earlier in correlations topic, one has to be
mindful that correlations do not tell us the direction of causality. Furthermore,
these techniques look into linear relationships only. Hence, the results will be
distorted if the sample range is restricted in the research (Aron et al., 2009).
Last but not least, as stated by Aron and his colleagues (2009), the more
complicated the statistical procedures, the more likely we are to get misleading
results. For instance, group assignment (i.e., random assignment of group),
curvilinear relationship and restricted range can affect the results of the research.
SELF-CHECK 10.2
1. When do you use causal modelling?
2. Define and explain the ordinary path analysis.
3. In your own words, define mediational analysis and explain the

difference between partially mediated and fully mediated.
4. What is a fit index? How do you consider if it is a good fit?
10.6 PROCEDURES THAT COMPARE GROUPS

Up till now, we have discussed different kinds of statistical procedures on
relationships among variables. These variables are independent variable and
dependent variable. Independent variable (IV) refers to a variable that is
manipulated by the researcher (Feldman, 2011). In other words, IV is a variable
that is believed to be a cause that will affect the dependent variable (Aron et al.,
2009). For instance, suppose a researcher wants to study the effectiveness of a
new supplement on oneÊs memory, the researcher would randomly divide the
participants into groups (e.g., group that receives supplement, group that

receives substitute). With this, we can see that the researcher manipulated the
variable by dividing it into an experimental group (i.e., group that receives
supplement) and a control group (group that receives substitute) in the study.
Variable like this is known as independent variable (IV).
On the other hand, dependent variable (DV) refers to the variable that the
researcher measures, which is expected to change according to the IV
manipulated by the researcher (Feldman, 2011). Simply put, DV is what the name
says, it „depends‰on the factor (i.e., independent variable) that the researcher
controls. Thus, the DV would be the effectiveness of the supplement (e.g., any
improvement in experimental group participantsÊ memory).
In regression, we discussed predictor and criterion variables. Predictor variable is

similar to the IV in t-test and analysis of variance, whereas criterion variable is
equivalent to the DV in t-test and analysis of variance (Aron et al., 2009).
Nevertheless, as stated by Aron and his colleagues (2009), researchers often use
the independent-dependent variable term in regression, but hardly use the
predictor-criterion variable term in t-test and analysis of variance.
SELF-CHECK 10.3
Suppose a researcher is carrying out an experiment to examine if

background music improves learning.
(a) Identify and discuss the independent and dependent variables of

this experiment.
(b) If you are the researcher, how would you set up the experimental
group and control group?
10.7 ANALYSIS OF COVARIANCE (ANCOVA)

According to Statistics Solutions (2016), analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) is a
statistical model that combines the elements of analysis of variance (ANOVA)
and regression. ANOVA is used to test the significance of (three or more) group
differences by comparing their means, whereas ANCOVA expands from the
ANOVA model with one or more additional variables (which is known as
covariates)(Aron et al., 2009). In more specific detail, these covariates are the
continuous variables, which the researcher would control statistically to examine
the effect of continuous variable(s) (covariate) towards a DV (Statistics Solutions,
2016). Researchers who use ANCOVA are interested in explaining the

unexplained variance with covariate(s). As stated by Aron and his colleagues

(2009), if all groups turn out to have the same value on covariates, the researcher
may adjust the dependent variable means by partialing out (or hold constant) the
effect of covariates. Figure 10.9 shows how ANCOVA compares a continuous DV
(e.g., test score) by category IV (e.g., level of education) which is controlled by a
continuous covariate (e.g., hours spent on study).
Figure 10.9: An example of ANCOVA

Source: Taylor, 2014
Here is another example of how ANCOVA is used in research. Iwata, Furmedge,

Sturrock and Gill (2014) conducted a research to study whether being a peer-
tutor will bring advantage to the students in their final examinations. After
running the basic statisticl analysis, Iwata and his colleagues (2014) then used
ANCOVA to control the covariate effects. They further reported their statistical
analysis result as:

Student data were divided according to whether or not students had enrolled
in the final year PAL SSC, and t-tests (normal distribution assumed), which
were carried out to compare the Z-scores of each final examination component
between the two groups, for each year and all three year groups combined.
Analyses of covariance (ANCOVAs) were then performed on the combined
data using Year 4 results as a covariate to control confounding effects. ...
[Result] When final-year examination results for all years were amalgamated,
Z-scores for PAL tutors were approximately 0.2 higher for all components; this
difference was statistically significant. However, when Year 4 Z-scores were
controlled in ANCOVA, this difference was no longer significant. Subgroup
analyses for individual peer-tutor cohorts compared with non-PAL students
(n = 878) using ANCOVA showed that each peer-tutor cohort scored higher
than non-PAL students for each examination component, but the differences
were not significant. Exceptions included significant differences in SSO
Z-scores between students who peer-tutored on the March PAL SSC and non-
PAL students (Z = 0.425 and Z = 0.009, respectively; F(1,944) = 4.980,
p = 0.026), and in written examination, Z-scores between students who peer-
tutored on the December PAL SSC and non-PAL students (Z = 0.541 and
Z = 0.019, respectively; F(1,897) = 5.992, p = 0.015).
In short, the main difference between ANOVA and ANCOVA is the presence of
the letter „C‰ that refers to covariate which moderates the influence of IV on the
DV (Taylor, 2014). ANOVA includes only two variables which are IV and DV,
whereas ANCOVA involves an additional variable called covariate, which must
be a continuous variable (i.e., ratio data, interval data) (Statistics Solutions, 2016).
10.8 MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE

(MANOVA) AND MULTIVARIATE
ANALYSIS OF COVARIANCE (MANCOVA)
MANOVA and ANOVA are very similar. Basically, the only difference between
ANOVA and MANOVA is the addition of „M‰ in front of „ANOVA‰. This letter
„M‰ refers to multivariate, which looks into „multiple‰ DV. In other words,
MANOVA is used when there are two or more DVs (Aron et al., 2009).
Furthermore, according to Aron and his colleagues (2009), the DVs in MANOVA
are typically different measures but they are measuring about the same thing,
such as, three different IQ tests (e.g., Wechsler, Standford-Binet, Mega Test).

In terms of statistical procedures, we will also interpret the results in the same
basic way as others, where we will look at the testÊs significance level to decide
whether to reject or accept the null hypothesis (Aron et al., 2009). Hence, after
running MANOVA, it would tell us the differences between IV and DV groups
as a whole by showing us an overall F value, and significance level for the
differences among the IV groups. After that, as stated by Aron and his colleagues
(2009), if the groups differ significantly from DVs as a whole, we would need to
run univariate analyses of variance (i.e., individual analyses of variance) to see if
the IVs differ on any or all of the DVs.
Here is an example research using MANOVA by Brodar, Crosskey, and

Thompson(2015). Brodar and his colleagues studied the constructs of self-
compassion by looking at three components, which are perfectionistic self-
presentation, perceived forgiveness, and perceived support. They further
reported their results as:
To address our second hypothesis, a one-way multivariate analysis of variance

(MANOVA) was used to analyse whether there was a significant group effect
across the variables of interest, that is, whether those with low self-compassion
differed from those with high self-compassion in their levels of perfectionistic
self-presentation, perceived forgiveness, and perceived support. ... The
MANOVA analysis indicated an overall significant group effect (F[l, 30] =
4.08, p = 0.005; WilksÊ Lambda = 0.51; partial eta squared = 0.50).
In brief, MANOVA is similar to ANOVA. The only difference is that MANOVA

include multiple (more than one) continuous DVs.
Furthermore, similar to the difference between ANOVA and ANCOVA,

MANOVA and MANCOVA also differ in terms of the presence of the letter „C‰,
the covariate. In other words, MANCOVA is a MANOVA with covariates (Aron
et al., 2009).
10.9 OVERVIEW OF STATISTICAL TECHNIQUES

So far, in this topic, we have looked at various statistical procedures and
techniques. All these techniques are laid out in the Table 10.3.

Table 10.3: Major Statistical Techniques
Number of
Number of
Dependent
Statistical Association or Independent Any Variable
Variables (or
Technique Difference (or Predictor) Controlled?
Criterion
Variables
Variables)
Bivariate Association 1 1 No
correlation/
regression
Multilevel Association Any number, 1 Maybe

modelling grouped in
some way
Partial Association 1 1 Yes

correlation
Reliability Association Many, not No

coefficients, differentiated
factor analysis
Path analysis, Association Many, with

structural specified causal
equation patterns
modelling
One-way Difference 1 1 No
ANOVA, t-test
Factorial Difference Any number 1 No

ANOVA
ANCOVA Difference Any number 1 Yes
MANOVA Difference Any number Any number No
MANCOVA Difference Any number Any number Yes

SELF-CHECK 10.4
1. Define covariate.
2. What is multivariate statistics?
3. Differentiate the following:
(a) ANOVA versus ANCOVA;
(b) MANOVA versus MANCOVA;
(c) MANOVA versus ANOVA; and
(d) MANCOVA versus ANCOVA.
10.10 CONTROVERSY: SHOULD STATISTICS BE

CONTROVERSIAL?
According to Aron et al. (2009), a long time ago, debates happened between the
psychologists/statisticians as they were not satisfied with the statistical
approaches. Nevertheless, most of the statisticians and psychologists are rather
happy with the methods found in textbooks nowadays. Despite the satisfaction
with the methods today, Aron and his colleagues (2009) remind us not to blindly
apply the methods but to think critically when applying the methods. They
believe that with everyoneÊs efforts, there will be improvement and
developments in data analysis methods.
10.11 HOW TO READ RESULTS USING

UNFAMILIAR STATISTICAL TECHNIQUES
At the end of this module, you should have at least some ideas on statistics
reported in research articles. Nonetheless, it is common for one to encounter
statistical technique(s) that he/she has no idea about. If you encounter such
issues, what can you do?

Aron et al. (2009) shared some suggestions:
(a) Look for Techniques that You Have an Idea About

Look for techniques that you understand or familiar with, read up from
there, and expand to the other sections (for example, results, discussion,
limitation) so that you can get some ideas on the research as a whole.
(b) Look for the Symbol „p‰

p level tells you if the results of the research are significant.
(c) Search on Internet or Ask Your Friend or Refer to a Statistics Textbook

Sometimes, it is also hard to make sense with a statistics textbook. In this
case, it is advisable to ask help from your friend, professor, supervisor, or
graduate student who are good in statistics.
Nonetheless, as Aron and his colleagues (2009) stated, it would be best for us to
attend more or advance statistics courses to learn and keep ourselves updated
with the latest statistical techniques and procedures.
In conclusion, statistical methods keep changing and are invented from time to
time. It is common for psychologists to be puzzled with the numbers and
symbols they read in research articles. Therefore, be confident and open to learn.
With this attitude, you can master statistics (Aron et al., 2009).
ACTIVITY 10.2
Share your concern(s) and experience(s) learning statistics with your

tutor and coursemates. What will you do with your statistics knowledge
after this?
 Multiple regression analysis will be the best method to assess the significant
relationships between independent variables and dependent variables. It can
be done in stepwise method or hierarchical method. Stepwise multiple
regression analysis develops regression equation by including the predictor
variables one at a time, while hierarchical regression analysis include the
predictor variables based on their research hypothesis with reference to past
research or experiment.

 Partial correlation is the amount of relationship between two variables, and

the influences between them.
 Reliability refers to the measurement for consistency or regularity, which can

be divided into test-retest reliability, split-half reliability, internal consistency
reliability (CronbachÊs alpha), and inter-rater reliability.
 Factor analysis helps to examine if the relationship patterns between all the
variables in a study can be explained by any unobserved variables (latent
variable or factors). A high factor loading means it is likely to be influenced
by the same factors.
 Causal modelling sees beyond the correlation pattern between variables, and
checks further on the causal relations between variables whether they match
with certain theories. Path analysis illustrates these relationships with the
arrow directions, pointing from cause to effect. Mediational analysis is a type
of path analysis that examines whether a recognised causal relationship
between two variables is intervened by the mediator variable (M). Structural
equation modelling incorporates paths with underlying, unmeasured,
theoretical variables, allows a kind of significance test, and provides
measures of fit index.
 Independent variable (IV) refers to a variable that is manipulated by the

researcher IV while dependent variable (DV) refers to the variable that the
researcher measures, which is expected to change according to the IV that is
manipulated by the researcher. In regression, predictor variable is similar to
the IV in t-test and analysis of variance, whereas criterion variable is
equivalent to the DV in t-test and analysis of variance.
 The analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) expands from the ANOVA model

with one or more additional variables called covariates.
 The multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) is an ANOVA that has two

or more DVs. The multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) is an
ANCOVA that has two or more DVs.
 It is common to encounter statistical technique(s) that we are not familiar

with. However, we can look for some familiar information, such as,
relationship or differences between variables, or p values. Yet, it is always
best to ask the experts and attend statistics classes.

Adjusted mean Mediational analysis

Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) Multilevel modelling
Covariate Multivariate analysis of covariance
(MANCOVA)
CronbachÊs alpha
Multivariate analysis of variance
Dependent variable (DV) (MANOVA)
Factor Partial correlation
Factor analysis Path
Factor loading Path analysis
Fit index Path coefficient
Independent variable (IV) Reliability
Internal consistency reliability Split-half reliability
Inter-rater reliability Structural equation modelling
Latent variable Test-retest reliability
Brodar, K. E., Crosskey, L. B., & Thompson, R. J. (2015). The relationship of self-
compassion with perfectionistic self-presentation, perceived forgiveness,
and perceived social support in an undergraduate Christian community.
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stat-help.com/notes.html
Feldman, R. S. (2014). Essentials of understanding psychology (11th ed.). NY:

McGraw Hill.

Field, A. (2009). Discovering statistics using SPSS (3rd ed.). London: Sage
Publications.
Garson, G. D. (2004). Multivariate analysis for applied social science. Retrieved

from http://www2.chass.ncsu.edu/garson/pa765/path.htm
Hyland, P., Shevlin, M., Adamson, G., & Boduszek, D. (2014). The organization of
irrational beliefs in posttraumatic stress symptomology: Testing the
predictions of REBT theory using structural equation modeling. Journal of
Clinical Psychology, 70(1), 48-59. doi: 10.1002/jclp.22009
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better in examinations? An analysis of medical school final examination
results. Medical Education, 48, 698-704. doi: 10.1111/medu.12475
Leary, M. R. (2001). Introduction to behavioral research methods (3rd ed.).

Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
North Carolina State University. (n.d.). Multiple regression: Hierarchical versus

step-wise. Retrieved from http://faculty.chass.ncsu.edu/garson/PA765/
regress.htm
Nunally, J.C. (1981). Psychometric theory (2nd ed.). New Delhi, Tata: McGraw-
Hill publishing Co Ltd.
Rahn, M. (2016). Factor analysis: A short introduction, part 1. Retrieved from

http://www.theanalysisfactor.com/factor-analysis-1-introduction/
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ed.). New York: John Wiley & Sons.
Sekaran, U. (2006). Research method for business: A skill building approach (4th
ed.). India: John Wiley and Sons.
Smorti, M., Cappelli, F., Guarnieri, S., Bergesio, F., & Perfetto, F. (2014).
Depression and cardiac symptoms among AL amyloidosis patients: The
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263-272.
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5-12. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/27548053

Statistics Solutions. (2016). Conduct and interpret a one-way ANCOVA: What is

the one-way ANCOVA?. Retrieved from http://www.statisticssolutions.
com/one-way-ancova/
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8dfd
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Faculty of Applied Social Sciences

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

Module Writers: Tan Pei Jun

Moderators: Dr Wong Huey Siew

Developed by: Centre for Instructional Design and Technology

First Edition, December 2016

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

Topic 1 Introduction to Statistics 1

Topic 2 Frequency Distributions and Graphs 15

Topic 3 Pictorial Presentation 31

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

Topic 4 Measures of Central Tendency 62

Topic 5 Measures of Dispersion or Variability 76

Topic 6 The Normal Curve, Probability and Population 90

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

Topic 7 Introduction to the t-Test 100

Topic 8 Correlation 125

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

8.3.4 Steps in Computing the Correlation Coefficient 137

Topic 9 Regression and Prediction 151

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

Topic 10 Making Sense of Statistical Procedure 168

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Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

COURSE GUIDE DESCRIPTION

As an open and distance learner, you should be acquainted with learning

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

Table 1: Estimation of Time Accumulation of Study Hours

1. Explain the descriptive statistics concept;

2. Discuss the concepts of probability and the distribution;

3. Explain the basic knowledge of inferential statistics; and

4. Recognise statistical procedure in the field of psychology.

Topic 1 gives an overview of statistics. Basic terms in statistics will be defined.

Topic 2 discusses tabular presentation. You will learn how to organise,

Topic 3 focuses on pictorial presentation. We will discuss various ways of

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

Topic 5 discusses measures of dispersion or variability. We will discuss the

Topic 7 introduces the basic hypothesis-testing procedure, known as the t-test. It

Topic 8 introduces correlation. It shows us the way to draw and interpret

Topic 9 discusses prediction. It focuses on regression analysis and discusses

Topic 10 gives us an overview of advance statistical procedures, which include

TEXT ARRANGEMENT GUIDE

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

Self-Check: This component of the module is inserted at strategic locations

Activity: Like Self-Check, the Activity component is also placed at various

References: The References section is where a list of relevant and useful

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

Mohd Kidin Shahran. (2007). Introduction To Statistics (SBST1103). OUM

Mohd Kidin Shahran. (2007). Pengenalan Ujian Hipotesis (SBST2103). OUM

TAN SRI DR ABDULLAH SANUSI (TSDAS) DIGITAL

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

In reality, psychologistsÊ works are based heavily on statistics, which helps to

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM)

How is psychology, which looks into peopleÊs behaviour, related to

1.1 WHAT IS STATISTICS?

A branch of mathematics that focuses on the organisation, analysis and