Research II Activity Sheet

Quarter 4 –MELC 1

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS METHODS

I. Learning Competency with Code

Apply the different methods of data collection and presentation (SSP_RS8-CPD-IV-s-20) II.

Background Information for Learners Data

Collection varies among researchers depending on the chosen research topic, especially for scientific
researchers. Data collection refers to the process of gathering data (Prieto, 2017). In the previous
lessons, you were taught the procedures that you might use to collect your data and the safety
precautions that you need to follow to avoid unnecessary accidents. The next step that you are about
to do is to organize the raw data for analysis. The researcher should ensure that the quality of the data
involves accuracy, consistency, completeness, and systematized arrangement for easy coding and
tabulation.

A data analysis plan is needed for every research methodology. This includes specifying the
statistical measures to use and address the research questions. The methods that can be utilized for
data analysis are the type of data, the variables to be used, the number of cases, and the distribution
of the variables.

Purpose of Data Analysis Plan

A data analysis plan aims to collect useful data to look for solutions to research questions of interest. It
might be used to :

a) describe data sets;

b) determine the degree of relationship of variables;

c) determine differences between variables;

d) predict outcomes; and

e) compare variables.

All of the following above could be manipulated by using any or a combination of the following data
analysis strategies:

1. Exploratory Data Analysis This type of data analysis is used when the data is unclear. This
strategy utilizes arithmetic and visual presentations such as graphs. Given that the research of interest
is fresh, it is feasible to discover some inconsistencies, such as missing values, distribution of the data
or unusually small or too large values, or invalid data.

2. Descriptive Data Analysis This type of data analysis is manipulated to define, show or summarize
data in a significant way, leading to a simple interpretation of data. Descriptive data analysis does not
accept you to make conclusions outside the data that you have described. The commonly used
descriptive statistics are those that analyze the distribution of data such as frequency, percentage,
measures of central tendency, and measures of dispersion.

3. Inferential Data Analysis Inferential statistics tests hypotheses about a set of data to conclude
or make generalizations beyond merely describing the data. Inferential statistics include the tests of
significance of difference such as the t-test, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA); and tests of relationship such
as Product Moment Coefficient of Correlation or Person r, Spearman rho, linear regression, and Chi-
square test.

Quantitative Analysis in Evaluation

Before doing data analysis, it is important to determine the level of measurement of the quantitative
data. The choice of statistical measure/s to use is dependent on the level of measurement of the data.

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The following are the levels of measurement scales: • Nominal scale • Ordinal scale • Interval scale •
Ratio scale Nominal Scale

A nominal scale of measurement is used for labeling variables. It is sometimes called categorical
data. You could use 1 for male, and 2 for female if you want to categorize respondents based on
gender. No order or distance is observed. The Yes or No scale is an example of nominal data. The
numbers assigned to the variables have no quantitative value. Some examples of variables measured
on a nominal scale are gender, religious affiliation, race, or ethnic group.

Ordinal Scale An ordinal scale of measurement assigns order on items on the characteristics being
measured, i.e. ranking of individuals, attitudes, and characteristics. The order in the honor roll (first
honor, second honor, third honor); order of agreement (strongly agree, agree, strongly disagree), or
economic status (low, average, high) are some examples. Numerical scores such as first, second, third,
and so on are assigned but the numerical value or quantity has no value except its ability to establish
ranking among a set of data. You can talk about ordering, but differences in order between the ranks
are not specified.

Interval Scale

The interval scale has equal units of measurement, thereby, making it possible to interpret the order of
the scale scores and the distance between them. However, interval scales do not a “true zero”.

With interval data, addition and subtraction are possible but you cannot multiply or divide.

Ratio Scale

The ratio scale is considered the highest level of measurement. It has the characteristics of an interval
scale but it has a zero point. Because of this property, all statistical operations can be performed on
ratio scales. All descriptive and inferential statistics may be applied. Each variable can be added,
subtracted, multiplied, and divided.

A. Descriptive Data Analysis

1. Measures of Central Tendency

The common measures of central tendency are sometimes called measures of location or center,
including the mean, median, and mode.

1.1. Mean

This is often called the arithmetic average of a set of data. The mean is the sum of the experimental
values in the distribution divided by the number of observations. It is frequently used for interval or
ratio data. The symbol X (xbar) represents the arithmetic mean.

The mean is calculated by summing up the observations (items, height, scores, or responses) and
dividing by the number of observations.

The following examples show the calculation of the mean for ungrouped data, a list of data that is not
recognized in any way.

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A. FOR UNGROUPED DATA

Example 1. Find the mean of the measurement. 18, 26, 27, 29, 30

Solution: Substitute the measurements using the formula.

Note that the value of the mean falls near the middle of the data set.

Answer: X̅ is 26

Suppose the 3rd measurement was 17 (rather than 27). The mean would be 120/5 = 24. Thus, the
mean is changed when one of the values in the set of observations is changed.

Example 2: Find the mean of the following:

You can use the mean when the numbers can be added or when characteristics are
measured on a numerical scale like those used to describe height, weight, or scores on a test.

B. FOR GROUPED DATA

When the observations are grouped into classes, the formula for grouped data is as follows:

1.2. Weighted Mean

The average or weighted mean is necessary for some situations. Suppose that you are given the means
of two or more measurements and you wish to find the mean of all the measures combined into one
group. The formula for weighted mean is given by,

Example 1 Solve for the mean of the data below.

1.3. Median

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 The median is the midpoint of the distribution. It represents the point in the data where 50% of the
values fall below that point and 50% fall above it.

For observations with even numbers, the median can be calculated by getting the average of the two
middle scores. The most appropriate measure of central tendency for ordinal data is the median.

A. For Ungrouped Data

The median may be computed from ungrouped data following these steps: 1. Arrange the items
(scores, responses, observations) from lowest to highest.

2. Count to the middle value. For an odd number of values arranged from lowest to highest, the median
corresponds to the value. If the array contains an even number of observations, the median is the
average of the two middle values.

Example 1

Consider these odd numbers of numerical values: 7, 8, 8, 9, 10, 12, 23

By inspection, the median is 9 because half of the values (7, 8, 8) are below 9, and a half 9, 10, 12, 23)
are above 9. Since n = 7 is odd, the median has rank ( )

th = ( )th = 4th item and is equal to 9. Therefore, the median is 9.

Example 2

Consider these even numbers of numerical values: 12, 15, 18, 22, 30, 32

The two middle values are 18 and 22. If the average of the two middle numbers is taken, that is, 18 +
22 = 40 and divided by 2, the median is 20.

Example 3

Find the median for the set of measurements. 15, 20, 12, 26, 3, 30, 14

Solution: You start by ranking the measurements from the smallest to the largest 3,
12,14,15,20,26,30. Since the number of cases is odd the median is rank ( )th= ( )th = 4th is equal to
15. Therefore, the median is 15.

Suppose the last number is 32 (rather than 30), the median is still 15. Unlike the mean, the median is
not affected by extreme values in the distribution.

A. For Grouped Data

If the data are grouped into classes, the median will fall into one of the classes as the (n/2)th value. The
process involves several steps and has for its general formula the following:

LESSON 2- DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS METHODS

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Example 4 The following data show the distribution of the ages of people interviewed for a survey on a
topic about climate change.

Solution:

Since there are 100 values in the data set, the median will represent the (n/2)th or the (100/2)th item,
which is the 50th largest value.

Determine in which class the 50th value falls. The first two classes have a cumulative frequency of 34
classes.

We need another 16 values to reach 50. Thus, the 50th value falls in the next class which contains 22
values. The median class then is 31-40.

Thus,

L = 30.5

n = 100

F = 34

f = 22

i = 10

Substitute all these values using the following formula.

This means that 50% or 50 of the 100 ages will fall below 37.77. and 50% or 50 will fall
above it.

1.4. Mode

The mode is the most commonly occurring value in a set of observations. The distribution is bimodal
(with 2 highest observations) or multimodal (with more than two highest observations) for cases with
more than one observation of equal frequency. In cases where every item has an equal number of
observations, there is no mode. The mode is appropriate for nominal data.

Example 1 The ages of fifteen (15) persons assembled in a room are as follows: 16, 18, 18, 18, 25, 25,
25, 30, 34, 36, 38 Solution: The age of 25 is the mode because it has been recorded three times in the
sample, more than any other age.

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Solution: Both 3 and 5 have a frequency of 3, the data is therefore bimodal. Therefore, the mode is 3
and 5.

Referring to the data on the distribution of the ages of 100 people interviewed for a survey on a topic
on national interest, the modal class is 31- 40.

The mode which corresponds to the class midpoint would be = 31 + 40 / 2= 35.5.

2. Measures of Dispersion The extent of the spread or the dispersion of the data is described by a
group of measures called measures of dispersion, also called measures of variability. The
measures to be considered are range, average or mean deviation, standard deviation, and variance.

2.1. The Range The variance between the largest and the smallest values in a set of data is called a
range.

Consider the following scores obtained by ten (10) students participating in a Science contest: 8, 11,
12, 14, 15, 18, 19, 20, 22, 24 Thus, the range = 24 - 8 = 16. Range is 16

2.2. Average (Mean) Deviation) This refers to the absolute variation or deviation between the
values in a set of data and the mean, divided by the total number of values in the set of data.

A. For Ungrouped Data

The formula based on the definition is:

Example

Thus, on average, each value is 11.6 units from the

2.3. Standard Deviation

The standard deviation (SD) is the measure of the spread or variation of data about the mean. This is
computed by calculating the average distance that the average values are from the mean.

A. For Ungrouped Data

The formula for calculating the standard deviation for ungrouped data is given by

Example 1 Consider the same data used in the illustration for using the range. The values are 6, 10, 12,
15, 18, 18, 20,23, 25, 28.

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The standard deviation allows you to conclude scores in the distribution. The following
conclusions can be reached if that distribution of scores is normal:

 Approximately 68% of the scores in the sample fall within one standard deviation of the mean.
2. Approximately 95% of the scores in the sample fall within two standard deviations of the
mean. 3. Approximately 99% of the scores in the sample fall within three standard deviations of
the mean.

4. In the example, with an x̄ of 17.5 and a standard deviation of 6.95, we can say that,

68% of the scores will drop in the range

= (17.5 - 6.95) to (17.5 + 6.95)

= 10.5 to 24.45

5. Likewise, 95% of the scores will fall in the range.

= 17.5 – (2) (6.95) to 17.5 + (2) (6.95)

= (17.5 – 13.9) to (17.5 + 13.9)

= 3.6 to 31.4

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 III. Activity Proper Objective: Apply the different methods of data collection and
presentation. A. Given the data below, try to compute the mean. Show your complete
solution on a sheet of paper.

B. Consider the following grouped frequency distribution and provide the needed data
below.

1. Compute the following: a. Mean b. Median c. Mode d. Range e. Standard deviation

2. Based on the computations you have done in Number 1, what do the results tell you?

IV. Reflection

Complete the statements below.

I understand________________________________________________________________________________________

I don’t understand__________________________________________________________________________________

I need information about___________________________________________________________________________