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Theodore B. Creighton , is a Professor at Virginia Tech and the Publications Director for
NCPEA Publications , the Founding Editor of
Education Leadership Review, and the Senior Editor of the NCPEA Connexions Project.
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Brad E. Bizzell , is a recent graduate of the Virginia Tech Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, and is a School Improvement Coordinator for the Virginia Tech Training and Technical Assistance Center. In addition, Dr. Bizzell serves as an Assistant Editor of the NCPEA Connexions Project in charge of technical formatting and design.
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Janet Tareilo , is a Professor at Stephen F. Austin State University and serves as the Assistant Director of NCPEA Publications. Dr. Tareilo also serves as an Assistant Editor of the NCPEA Connexions Project and as a editor and reviewer for several national and international journals in educational leadership.
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Thomas Kersten is a Professor at Roosevelt University in Chicago. Dr. Kersten is widely published and an experienced editor and is the author of
Taking the Mystery Out of Illinois School Finance , a Connexions Print on Demand publication. He is also serving as Editor in Residence for this book by Slate and LeBouef.
Calculating descriptive statistics
In this set of steps, readers are provided with directions on calculating basic measures of central tendency (i.e., mean, median, and mode), measures of dispersion (i.e., standard deviation, variance, and range), and measures of normality (i.e., skewness and kurtosis). For detailed information regarding the advantages and limitations of each of the measures cited, readers are referred to the Hyperstats Online Statistics Textbook at
(External Link) or to the
Electronic Statistics Textbook (2011) at
(External Link)
Step one
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First check the accuracy of your dataset.
- √ Analyze
- * Descriptive Statistics
- * Frequencies
- √ Move over the independent variable/s
- √ Move over the dependent variable/s
- √ OK
- Uncheck the display "frequency tables" so that you are not provided with the frequencies of your data every time descriptive statistics are obtained.
Now check your output to see that the values for each of the variables is within the possible limits (e.g., 1 and 2 for gender). If your dataset is inaccurate, correct any inaccuracies before calculating any statistics.
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To calculate descriptive statistics:
- √ Analyze
- * Descriptive Statistics
- * Frequencies
- * Move over the dependent variable/s
- * Do
NOT move over the independent variable/s or any string variables
- * Statistics
- * Three basic measures of central tendency, upper right part of screen: mean, median, and mode.
- * Three basic measures of variability, bottom left part of screen: variance, Standard Deviation, and range.
- * Skewness [Note. Skewness refers to the extent to which the data are normally distributed around the mean. Skewed data involve having either mostly high scores with a few low ones or having mostly low scores with a few high ones.] Readers are referred to the following sources for a more detailed definition of skewness:
(External Link)&term_id=356 and
(External Link)
- * Kurtosis [Note. Kurtosis also refers to the extent to which the data are normally distributed around the mean. This time, the data are piled up higher than normal around the mean or piled up higher than normal at the ends of the distribution.] Readers are referred to the following sources for a more detailed definition of kurtosis:
(External Link)&term_id=326 and
(External Link)
