Scribd
Upload
14 views3 pages

Statistics Intro

Chapter 6 discusses the collection, organization, and interpretation of statistical data, defining key terms such as data, population, sample, census, and sampling. It outlines various sampling methods, including probability and non-probability sampling, and describes different types of data such as nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio data. The chapter also covers data collection methods like observation, interviews, and questionnaires, emphasizing the importance of summarizing and organizing data into frequency distributions.

Uploaded by

tonny odhiambo
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
14 views3 pages

Statistics Intro

Chapter 6 discusses the collection, organization, and interpretation of statistical data, defining key terms such as data, population, sample, census, and sampling. It outlines various sampling methods, including probability and non-probability sampling, and describes different types of data such as nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio data. The chapter also covers data collection methods like observation, interviews, and questionnaires, emphasizing the importance of summarizing and organizing data into frequency distributions.

Uploaded by

tonny odhiambo
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 3

CHAPTER 6: COLLECT, ORGANIZE AND INTERPRET STATISTICAL DATA

Definition of key terms


a) Data: Is facts and statistics collected together with desired aim to help
make conclusions Population: Is the whole number of people or objects
in a given area
b) Sample: Is a carefully chosen part of the population
c) Census: This is complete official count of a given population
d) Sampling: Is the process of selecting a sample from a population

In statistics, sampling is a method of selecting the subset of the population to make statistical
inferences. From the sample, the characteristics of the whole population can be estimated.
Sampling in market research can be classified into two different types, namely probability
sampling and non-probability sampling.

Audience / population / sample


There are two main measures of a population.
This includes
 Population size (the number of individuals)
 Population density: this is the number of individuals per unit area or
volume. A sample is usually used to help get the characteristics of a given
population. The reason why a sample is used is because sampling method is
cheaper and faster. There are various methods of choosing a sample from a
population. These methods are random and nonrandom.

Random or probability methods


are Non-random methods are
 Simple random sampling  Judgment sampling
 Stratified sampling  Quota sampling
 Systematic sampling  Cluster sampling etc.
 Multistage sampling etc.
Simple random sampling
Simple random sampling is a type of probability sampling in which the researcher randomly
selects a subset of participants from a population. Each member of the population has an equal
chance of being selected

Stratified Random Sampling


In this sampling method, a population is divided into subgroups to obtain a simple random
sample from each group and complete the sampling process (for example, number of girls in a
class of 50 strength). These small groups are called strata. The small group is created based on a
few features in the population. After dividing the population into smaller groups, the researcher
randomly selects the sample.

Systematic sampling
Systematic sampling is a probability sampling method in which sample members from a larger
population are selected according to a random starting point but with a fixed, periodic interval.

pg. 1
Example
As another example, if you wanted to select a random group of 1,000 people from a population
of 50,000 using systematic sampling, all the potential participants must be placed on a list and a
starting point would be selected. Once the list is formed, every 50th person on the list (starting
the count at the selected starting point) would be chosen as a participant, since 50,000 ÷ 1,000 =
50.

Multistage sampling.
Example,
A researcher wants to understand pet feeding habits among people living in the Kenya. For this,
he/she requires a sample size of 200 respondents. The researcher selects 10 counties out of 47 at
random. Further, he/she randomly picks out 3 sub-counties per county. From these 30 randomly
selected sub-counties, he/she then chooses 4 pet-owning households to conduct his research.

Types of data
Nominal data
Nominal data are used to label variables without any quantitative value i.e. cannot be measured.
What's your nationality?
 American
 German
 Kenyan
 Japanese
Ordinal data
Ordinal data classifies data while introducing an order, or ranking.
What is your poverty status?
 Very Rich
 Rich
 Least poor
 Poor
 Most Poor
 Very Poor

Interval data
Interval data classifies and ranks data but also introduces measured intervals. A great example is
temperature scales, in Celsius or Fahrenheit. However, interval data has no true zero, i.e. a
measurement of ‘zero’ can still represent a quantifiable measure (such as zero Celsius, which is
simply another measure on a scale that includes negative values).

Ratio data
Ratio data is the most complex level of measurement. Like interval data, it classifies and ranks
data, and uses measured intervals. However, unlike interval data, ratio data also has a true zero.
When a variable equals zero, there is none of this variable. A good example of ratio data is the
measure of height—you cannot have a negative measure of height.

pg. 2
Data collection method is selected
There are various methods of collecting primary data. They include;
 Observation
Researchers observe and record behaviors, actions, or events in their natural setting. This method
is useful for gathering data on human behavior, interactions, or phenomena without direct
intervention.
 Interviews
Interviews involve direct interaction between the researcher and the respondent. They can be
conducted in person, over the phone, or through video conferencing. Interviews can be structured
(with predefined questions), semi-structured (allowing flexibility), or unstructured (more
conversational).
 Questionnaires
Researchers design structured questionnaires or surveys to collect data from individuals or
groups. These can be conducted through face-to-face interviews, telephone calls, mail, or online
platforms.
 Sampling etc.

Appropriate statistical data is collected and organized


Large amounts of data normally should be summarized. In preparation for
the summarization, it is often useful to distribute the data into groups or
classes or categories and then determine the number of individuals
belonging to each group, class or category. Such a number is called the
class frequency. If the data is arranged in classes together with the
corresponding class frequency for each class in a table, we call such a
frequency distribution or frequency table.
NB:The frequency of any value is the number of times that value appears in
a data set.

pg. 3

You might also like