Lesson 4 Topic 4: Measures of Variability • Define variability and

4.1: Dispersion Measurement explain its use and

4.2: Ungrouped Data importance as a
4.3: Grouped Data statistical measure.
4.4: Relative Dispersion Measurement • Define and calculate
the range as a simple
measure of variability
and explain its
limitations
• Define variance and
standard deviation and
describe what is
measured by each.
• Calculate variance
and standard deviation
for a simple set of
scores for grouped and
ungrouped data
• Estimate the standard
deviation for a set of
scores based on a
visual examination of a
frequency distribution
graph of the distribution

4.1: Introduction to Dispersion Measurement

Variability has a similar meaning in statistics as it does in normal English to say that something is variable suggests
that it is not identical to all other things. In statistics, the objective is to quantify the degree of variation for a
specific collection of scores, or distribution. Simply said, there is no variability if the scores in a distribution are
identical. When there are minor variations between scores, the variability is minimal, and when there are large
differences between scores, the variability is large. Variability provides a quantitative measure of the differences
between scores in a distribution and describes the degree to which the scores are spread out or clustered
together.

Variability describes the distribution. Specifically, it tells whether the scores are clustered close together or are
spread out over a large distance. Usually, variability is defined in terms of distance. It tells how much distance to
expect between one score and another, or how much distance to expect between an individual score and the
mean. For example, we know that the heights for most adult males are clustered close together, within 5 or 6
inches of the average. Although more extreme heights exist, they are relatively rare.
Variability assesses how accurately an individual score (or collection of scores) represents the distribution overall.
This element of variability is crucial for inferential statistics, which rely on relatively small samples to answer
questions about populations. Consequently, variability provides information regarding the amount of expected
inaccuracy when utilising a sample to represent a population. In this chapter, we examine three measures of

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variability: the range, the standard deviation, and the variance. The standard deviation and the associated
variance measurement are by far, the most crucial of these three.

4.2 Ungrouped Data – Range, Variance and Standard Deviation

Range
The obvious first step toward defining and measuring variability is the range, which is the distance covered by
the scores in a distribution, from the smallest score to the largest score. Although the concept of the range is fairly
straightforward, there are several distinct methods for computing the numerical value. One commonly used
definition of the range simply measures the difference between the largest score and the smallest score.

Find the distance between the highest and lowest scores to calculate the range. The issue with using the range
as a measure of variability is that it is entirely dependent on the two extreme values and disregards the other
scores in the distribution. Thus, a distribution with one score that is disproportionately large (or tiny) will have a
wide range, even if the other values are packed closely together. Because the range does not take into account
all the scores in the distribution, it frequently does not provide an adequate depiction of the distribution's
variability. Therefore, the range is seen as an imprecise and untrustworthy measure of variability. Therefore, in the
majority of cases it is irrelevant which definition is used to calculate the range.

Variance and Standard Deviation

The standard deviation is the most commonly used and the most important measure of variability. Standard
deviation uses the mean of the distribution as a reference point and measures variability by considering the
distance between each score and the mean. In simple terms, the standard deviation provides a measure of the
standard, or average, distance from the mean, and describes whether the scores are clustered closely around
the mean or are widely scattered. Although the concept of standard deviation is straightforward, the actual
equations tend to be more complex. Therefore, we begin by looking at the logic that leads to these equations.
If you remember that our goal is to measure the standard, or typical, distance from the mean, then this logic and
the equations that follow should be easy to remember.

© UNITAR International University 2 Prepared by: Farah Damia binti Mohd Nasir
Standard deviation is the most used measure of dispersion. A Standard Deviation value tells how closely the
values of a data set clustered around the mean. Lower value of standard deviation indicates that the data set
value is spread over relatively smaller range around the mean. Larger value of data set indicates that the data
set value is spread over relatively larger around the mean (far from mean). Standard deviation is obtained the
positive root of the variance.

Question to try:

1. Let x denote the total production (in unit) of company. Find the variance and standard deviation of table
below:

Solution: 1182.50, 34.75

The properties of variance and standard deviation:

i. The standard deviation is a measure of variation of all values from the
mean.
ii. The value of the variance and the standard deviation are never negative.
iii. Also, larger values of variance or standard deviation indicate greater
amounts of variation.
iv. The value of s can increase dramatically with the inclusion of one or
more outliers.
v. The measurement units of variance are always the square of the
measurement units of the original data while the units of standard
deviation is the same as the units of the original data values.

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 4.3 Grouped Data – Range, Variance and Standard Deviation

Range

In case of continuous frequency distribution, range, according to the definition, is calculated as the difference
between the lower limit of the minimum interval and upper limit of the maximum interval of the grouped data.

Question to try:

1. Find the range in the grouped data below:

Range = 100.5 – 40.5 = 60

Variance and Standard Deviation

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Question to try:

1. Find the variance and standard deviation for the following data:

Solution: (7.5820, 2.75)

2. The speeds to the nearest miles per hour, of 120 vehicles passing a check point were recorded and are
grouped in the table below:

Speed (mph) 21 - 25 26 - 30 31 - 35 36 - 40 41 - 45
Number of vehicles 22 48 25 16 9

a) Estimate the mean and variance of this distribution.

b) What is the modal class and class median?
c) Find the range.

4.4: Relative Dispersion Measurement

To compare two or more distribution that has different unit based on their dispersion or to compare two or more
distribution that has the same unit but big different in their value of mean. This measurement called modified
coefficient or coefficient of variation, CV.

Question to try:

© UNITAR International University 5 Prepared by: Farah Damia binti Mohd Nasir
 1. Given mean and standard deviation of monthly salary for two groups of workers who are working in ABC
company- Group 1: 700 & 20 and Group 2 :1070 & 20. Find the CV for every group and determine which
group is more dispersed. Solution: (2.86%, 1.87%)

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