Managing Data and Defining Variables

Chrisnilu D. SanlaoChrisnilu D. SanlaoReporter

Methods fo Research

Importance Step that’s sit between raw quantitative Data

• Managed to collect • Ability to take on statistical

analysis

Data Management

The challenge is employing a rigorous and systematic approach to data management that will allow you to build or create a data set that can me managed and utilized throughout the process of analysis.

Methods fo Research

Five Step are essentials on managing data

Methods fo Research

Step 1 Familiarize Yourself

Involve accessing programs and Involve accessing programs and arranging necessary training. arranging necessary training.

1.IBM SPSS Statistics – (www.spss.com)2.SAS – (www.sas.com) 3.Minitab – (minitab.com) 4.Excel – (Microsoft Office Product) 5.R – (www.rproject.org)

IBM SPSS – sophisticated and user – friendly

SAS - often an institutional standard, but some feel it I not as user friendly

Minitab - more introductory, good for leas and small data sets

Excel – while not a dedicated statistics program, it can handle the basic and is readily available on most PCs

R – free software environment for statistical computing and graphics

Step 2: Keep a Record of your Data

Keep in mind that original data should be kept for a reasonable period of time; researchers need to be able to trace result back to original sources

Step 3: Screen Your Data for any Potential

This includes a preliminary check to see if your data is legible and complete. If done early, you can uncover potential problems not picked up in your pilot, and make improvement to your data collection protocols.

Step 4: Enter the Data

First is to define your variables

Two steps involved in data entry

Second step is to systematically Second step is to systematically enter your data into a database.enter your data into a database.

Step 5: Clean the Data

This involve combing through the data to make sure any entry error are found, and that the data set looks in order.

When entering quantified data it is easy to make mistakes – particularly if you’re moving fast. It is essential that you go through you data to make sure it is as accurate as possible.

Understanding Variable

cause and effect

Dependent variables – the things you are trying to study or what you are trying to measure.

example, you might be interested in knowledge what factors cause

chronic head-aches, a strong income stream, or level of achievement in secondary school, head – aches,

income and achievement would all be dependent variables.

Independent variables - the things that might be causing an effect on the things you are trying to understand.

For example, reading might cause headaches: gender may have a role in

determining income; parental influence may impact on level of achievement. The

independent variables here are reading, gender, and parental influence.

Understanding Variables

Measurement Scales

Nominal Nominal • Numbers are arbitrarily assigned to

represent categories and are a coding scheme that are no numerical significance

• “Nominal” scales could simply be called “labels.” The main function of nominal data is to allow researchers to tall responses in order to understand population distribution.

Example of NominalExample of Nominal

Ordinal Ordinal • This scale rank – order categories in

some meaningful way: There is an order to the coding.

• With ordinal scales, it is the order of the values is what’s important and significant, but the differences between each one is not really known. 

IntervalIntervalInterval scales are

numeric scales in which we know not only the order, but also the exact differences between the values. This scale does not have an absolute zero.

RatioRatioNot only is each point

on a ratio scale equidistant but there is also an absolute zero.

Ratio scales are the Ratio scales are the ultimate nirvana when it comes to ultimate nirvana when it comes to measurement scales because they measurement scales because they tell us about the order, they tell us the tell us about the order, they tell us the exact value between units, AND they exact value between units, AND they also have an absolute zero–which also have an absolute zero–which allows for a wide range of both allows for a wide range of both descriptive and inferential statistics to  to be applied. be applied.

1. State 3 example of dependent and independent variables.

Chrisnilu D. Sanlao Reporter ACTIVITYACTIVITY

2. State one example of each measurement scale (Nominal, Ordinal, Interval and Ratio)

Thank You

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