‫‪Bar Chart‬‬

‫‪: -‬اسم الطالب‬

‫كلية‬

‫قسم‬

‫المرحلة‬

‫الشعبة‬

‫‪1‬‬
A bar chart or bar graph is a chart or graph that presents categorical
data with rectangular bars with heights or lengths proportional to the
values that they represent. The bars can be plotted vertically or
horizontally. A vertical bar chart is sometimes called a line graph.

A bar graph shows comparisons among discrete categories. One axis of

the chart shows the specific categories being compared, and the other
axis represents a measured value. Some bar graphs present bars
clustered in groups of more than one, showing the values of more than
one measured variable.

A bar chart is a graph with rectangular bars. The graph usually compares
different categories. Although the graphs can be plotted vertically (bars
standing up) or horizontally (bars laying flat from left to right), the most
usual type of bar graph is vertical.

The horizontal (x) axis represents the categories; The vertical (y) axis
represents a value for those categories. In the graph below, the values
are percentages.

A bar graph is useful for looking at a set of data and making comparisons.
For example, it’s easier to see which items are taking the largest chunk of
your budget by glancing at the above chart rather than looking at a string
of numbers.

Bar charts can also represent more complex categories with stacked bar
charts or grouped bar charts. For example, if you had two houses and
needed budgets for each, you could plot them on the same x-axis with a
grouped bar chart, using different colors to represent each house.

Usage

Bar charts have a discrete domain of categories, and are usually scaled so
that all the data can fit on the chart. When there is no natural ordering of

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the categories being compared, bars on the chart may be arranged in any
order. Bar charts arranged from highest to lowest incidence are called
Pareto charts. Bar graphs/charts provide a visual presentation of
categorical data. Categorical data is a grouping of data into discrete
groups, such as months of the year, age group, shoe sizes, and animals.
These categories are usually qualitative. In a column bar chart, the
categories appear along the horizontal axis; the height of the bar
corresponds to the value of each category.

Grouped and Stacked

Bar graphs can also be used for more complex comparisons of data with
grouped bar charts and stacked bar charts. In a grouped bar chart, for
each categorical group there are two or more bars. These bars are color-
coded to represent a particular grouping. For example, a business owner
with two stores might make a grouped bar chart with different colored
bars to represent each store: the horizontal axis would show the months
of the year and the vertical axis would show the revenue. Alternatively,
a stacked bar chart could be used. The stacked bar chart stacks bars that
represent different groups on top of each other. The height of the
resulting bar shows the combined result of the groups. However, stacked

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bar charts are not suited to datasets where some groups have negative
values. In such cases, grouped bar chart are preferable.

Grouped bar graphs usually present the information in the same order in
each grouping. Stacked bar graphs present the information in the same
sequence on each bar.

Bar Graph Examples (Different Types)

A bar graph compares different categories. The bars can be vertical or

horizontal. It doesn’t matter which type you use—it’s a matter of choice
(and perhaps how much room you have on your paper!).

A bar chart with vertical bars. Categories are on the x-axis.

Bar chart with horizontal bars. Categories are on the y-axis. Image:
SAMHSA.gov.

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List of Types

1. Grouped Bar Graph

A grouped bar graph is a way to show information about sub-groups of

the main categories.

In the above image, the categories are issues that senior citizens face
(hearing loss and mobility issues); the sub-groups are age. A separate
colored bar represents each sub-group: blue for age 70-79 and red for
age 80-100.

A key or legend is usually included to let you know what each sub-
category is. Like regular bar charts, grouped bar charts can also be drawn
with horizontal bars.

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When there are only two sub-groups (as in the above image), the graph is
called a double bar graph. It’s possible to have as many sub-groups as
you like, although too many can make the graph look cluttered

2. Stacked Bar Chart

A stacked bar chart also shows sub-groups, but the sub-groups are
stacked on the same bar.

Stacked bar chart showing list price change announcements by company.

Each bar shows the total for sub-groups within each individual category.

Stacked bar chart showing list price change announcements by company.

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 Like the double bar chart, fifferent colors represent different sub-groups.
This type of chart is a good choice if you:

 Want to show the total size of groups.

 Are interested in showing how the proportions between groups related
to each other, in addition to the total of each group.
 Have data that naturally falls into components, like:
o Sales by district.
o Book sales by type of book.

Stacked bar charts can also show negative values; negative values are
displayed below the x-axis.

3. Segmented Bar Graph.

A type of stacked bar chart where each bar shows 100% of the discrete
value. They should represent 100% on each of the bars or else it’s going
to be an ordinary stacked bar chart. For more on this particular type of
graph, see: Segmented Bar Charts.

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How to Make a Bar Chart

By Hand

If you’re just starting to learn how to make a bar graph, you’ll probably
be asked to draw one by hand on graph paper at first. Here’s how to do
it.

Step 1: Number the Y-axis with the dependent variable. The dependent
variable is the one being tested in an experiment. In this example
question, the study wanted to know how many pets were in U.S.
households. So the number of pets is the dependent variable. The
highest number in the study is 8,000,000 and the lowest is 1,000,000 so it
makes sense to label the Y-axis from 0 to 8.

Step 2: Draw your bars. The height of the bar should be even with the
correct number on the Y-axis. Don’t forget to label each bar under the x-
axis.

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Step 3: Label the X-axis with what the bars represent. For this example
problem, label the x-axis “Pet Types” and then label the Y-axis with what
the Y-axis represents: “Number of pets (per 1,000 households).” Finally,
give your graph a name. For this example, call the graph “Pet ownership
(per 1,000 households).

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 Optional: In the above graph, I chose to write the actual numbers on the
bars themselves. You don’t have to do this, but if you have numbers than
don’t fall on a line (i.e. 900,000), then it can help make the graph clearer
for a viewer.

Tips:

1. Line the numbers up on the lines of the graph paper, not the spaces.

2. Make all your bars the same width.

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 References

1. ^ Clagett, Marshall (1968), Nicole Oresme and the Medieval Geometry

of Qualities and Motions, Madison: Univ. of Wisconsin Press, pp. 85–
99, ISBN 0-299-04880-2

2. ^ Beniger, James R.; Robyn, Dorothy L. (1978), "Quantitative Graphics in

Statistics: A Brief History", The American Statistician, Taylor & Francis,
Ltd., 32 (1): 1–
11, doi:10.1080/00031305.1978.10479235, JSTOR 2683467

3. ^ Der, Geoff; Everitt, Brian S. (2014). A Handbook of Statistical Graphics

Using SAS ODS. Chapman and Hall - CRC. ISBN 1-584-88784-2.

4. ^ a b Kelley, W. M.; Donnelly, R. A. (2009) The Humongous Book of

Statistics Problems. New York, NY: Alpha Books ISBN 1592578659

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