Basic Business Statistics

Chapter 1
Introduction and Data
Collection

2002 Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-2

Why a Manager Needs to

Know about Statistics
To know how to properly present
information
To know how to draw conclusions
about populations based on sample
information
To know how to improve processes
To know how to obtain reliable
forecasts
Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-3

The Growth and Development

of Modern Statistics
Needs of government to
collect data on its citizens

The development of the

mathematics of probability
theory
The advent of the computer
Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-4

Basics of Statistics
Definition: Science of collection, presentation, analysis, and reasonable
interpretation of data.
Statistics presents a rigorous scientific method for gaining insight into data. For
example, suppose we measure the weight of 100 patients in a study. With so
many measurements, simply looking at the data fails to provide an informative
account. However statistics can give an instant overall picture of data based
on graphical presentation or numerical summarization irrespective to the
number of data points. Besides data summarization, another important task of
statistics is to make inference and predict relations of variables.

Key Definitions A population (universe) is the collection of

things under consideration
A sample is a portion of the population
selected for analysis
A parameter is a summary measure
computed to describe a characteristic of the
population
A statistic is a summary measure computed
to describe a characteristic of the sample
Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-6

Population and Sample

Population

Use parameters
to summarize
features

Sample
Use statistics to
summarize
features

Inference
on the population
from the
Basic Business
Chap 1-7
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.
sample

Statistical Methods
Descriptive statistics
Collecting and describing data

Inferential statistics
Drawing conclusions and/or making
decisions concerning a population
based only on sample data

Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-8

Descriptive Statistics
Collect data
e.g. Survey

Present data
e.g. Tables and graphs

Characterize data

e.g. Sample mean =

Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-9

Inferential Statistics
Estimation
e.g.: Estimate the
population mean weight
using the sample mean
weight

Hypothesis testing
e.g.: Test the claim that
the population mean
weight is 120 pounds

Drawing conclusions and/or making decisions

concerning a population
based on sample results.
Basic Business
Chap 1-10
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Why We Need Data

To provide input to survey
To provide input to study
To measure performance of service or
production process
To evaluate conformance to standards
To assist in formulating alternative
courses of action
To satisfy curiosity
Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-11

Data Sources
Primary

Secondary

Data Collection

Data Compilation

Print or Electronic
Observation

Survey

Experimentation
Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-12

Types of Data
D a ta
C a te g o r ic a l
( Q u a l it a t iv e )

N u m e r ic a l
( Q u a n tit a tiv e )

D is c r e te

Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-13

C o n tin u o u s

A Taxonomy of Statistics

Statistical Description of Data

Statistics describes a numeric set of
data by its
Center
Variability
Shape

Statistics describes a categorical set

of data by
Frequency, percentage or proportion of
each category

Some Definitions
Distribution - (of a variable) tells us what values the variable
takes and how often it takes these values.
Unimodal - having a single peak
Bimodal - having two distinct peaks
Symmetric - left and right half are mirror images.

Frequency Distribution
Consider a data set of 26 children of ages 1-6 years. Then the
frequency distribution of variable age can be tabulated as
follows:
Frequency Distribution of Age
Age

Frequency

Grouped Frequency Distribution of Age:

Age Group

1-2

3-4

5-6

Frequency

12

Cumulative Frequency
Cumulative frequency of data in previous page
Age

Frequency

Cumulative Frequency

15

20

24

26

Age Group

1-2

3-4

5-6

Frequency

12

Cumulative Frequency

20

26

Data Presentation
Two types of statistical presentation of data - graphical and numerical.
Graphical Presentation: We look for the overall pattern and for striking
deviations from that pattern. Over all pattern usually described by
shape, center, and spread of the data. An individual value that falls
outside the overall pattern is called an outlier.
Bar diagram and Pie charts are used for categorical variables.
Histogram, stem and leaf and Box-plot are used for numerical variable.

Data Presentation Categorical

Variable
Bar Diagram: Lists the categories and presents the percent or count of
individuals who fall in each category.
Treatment
Group

Frequency

Proportion

Percent
(%)

15

(15/60)=0.25

25.0

25

(25/60)=0.333

41.7

20

(20/60)=0.417

33.3

Total

60

1.00

100

Data Presentation Categorical

Variable
Pie Chart: Lists the categories and presents the percent or count of
individuals who fall in each category.
Treatment
Group

Frequency

15

(15/60)=0.25

25.0

25

(25/60)=0.333

41.7

20

(20/60)=0.417

33.3

60

1.00

100

Total

Proportion

Percent
(%)

Graphical Presentation Numerical

Variable
Histogram: Overall pattern can be described by its shape, center,
and spread. The following age distribution is right skewed. The
center lies between 80 to 100. No outliers.
Mean

90.41666667

Standard Error

3.902649518

Median

84

Mode

84

Standard Deviation

30.22979318

Sample Variance

913.8403955

Kurtosis
Skewness

-1.183899591
0.389872725

Range

95

Minimum

48

Maximum

143

Sum
Count

5425
60

Graphical Presentation Numerical

Variable
Box-Plot: Describes the five-number summary
Figure 3: Distribution of Age

Box Plot

Numerical Presentation
A fundamental concept in summary statistics is that of a central value for a set of
observations and the extent to which the central value characterizes the whole
set of data. Measures of central value such as the mean or median must be
coupled with measures of data dispersion (e.g., average distance from the
mean) to indicate how well the central value characterizes the data as a whole.
To understand how well a central value characterizes a set of observations, let
us consider the following two sets of data:
A: 30, 50, 70
B: 40, 50, 60
The mean of both two data sets is 50. But, the distance of the observations from
the mean in data set A is larger than in the data set B. Thus, the mean of data
set B is a better representation of the data set than is the case for set A.

Methods of Center Measurement

Center measurement is a summary measure of the overall level of
a dataset
Commonly used methods are mean, median, mode, geometric
mean etc.
Mean: Summing up all the observation and dividing by number of
observations. Mean of 20, 30, 40 is (20+30+40)/3 = 30.

Notation : Let x1 , x2, ...xn are n observations of a variable

x. Then the mean of this variable,
n

x1 x2 ... xn
x

x
i 1

Methods of Center Measurement

Median: The middle value in an ordered sequence of observations.
That is, to find the median we need to order the data set and then
find the middle value. In case of an even number of observations
the average of the two middle most values is the median. For
example, to find the median of {9, 3, 6, 7, 5}, we first sort the
data giving {3, 5, 6, 7, 9}, then choose the middle value 6. If the
number of observations is even, e.g., {9, 3, 6, 7, 5, 2}, then the
median is the average of the two middle values from the sorted
sequence, in this case, (5 + 6) / 2 = 5.5.
Mode: The value that is observed most frequently. The mode is
undefined for sequences in which no observation is repeated.

Mean or Median
The median is less sensitive to outliers (extreme scores) than the
mean and thus a better measure than the mean for highly skewed
distributions, e.g. family income. For example mean of 20, 30, 40,
and 990 is (20+30+40+990)/4 =270. The median of these four
observations is (30+40)/2 =35. Here 3 observations out of 4 lie
between 20-40. So, the mean 270 really fails to give a realistic
picture of the major part of the data. It is influenced by extreme
value 990.

Methods of Variability Measurement

Variability (or dispersion) measures the amount of scatter in a
dataset.
Commonly used methods: range, variance, standard deviation,
interquartile range, coefficient of variation etc.
Range: The difference between the largest and the smallest
observations. The range of 10, 5, 2, 100 is (100-2)=98. Its a crude
measure of variability.

Methods of Variability Measurement

Variance: The variance of a set of observations is the average of the
squares of the deviations of the observations from their mean. In
symbols, the variance of the n observations x1, x2,xn is

( x1 x ) 2 .... ( xn x ) 2
S
n 1
2

Variance of 5, 7, 3? Mean is (5+7+3)/3 = 5 and the variance is

(5 5) 2 (3 5) 2 (7 5) 2
4
3 1
Standard Deviation: Square root of the variance. The standard
deviation of the above example is 2.

Methods of Variability Measurement

Quartiles: Data can be divided into four regions that cover the total
range of observed values. Cut points for these regions are known as
quartiles.
In notations, quartiles of a data is the ((n+1)/4)qth observation of the
data, where q is the desired quartile and n is the number of
observations of data.
The first quartile (Q1) is the first 25% of the data. The second quartile
(Q2) is between the 25th and 50th percentage points in the data. The
upper bound of Q2 is the median. The third quartile (Q3) is the 25%
of the data lying between the median and the 75% cut point in the
data.
Q1 is the median of the first half of the ordered observations and Q3 is
the median of the second half of the ordered observations.

Methods of Variability Measurement

In the following example Q1= ((15+1)/4)1 =4th observation of the data.
The 4th observation is 11. So Q1 is of this data is 11.
An example with 15 numbers
3 6 7 11 13 22 30 40 44 50 52 61 68 80 94
Q1
Q2
Q3
The first quartile is Q1=11. The second quartile is Q2=40 (This is
also the Median.) The third quartile is Q3=61.
Inter-quartile Range: Difference between Q3 and Q1. Inter-quartile
range of the previous example is 61- 40=21. The middle half of the
ordered data lie between 40 and 61.

Deciles and Percentiles

Deciles: If data is ordered and divided into 10 parts, then cut points
are called Deciles
Percentiles: If data is ordered and divided into 100 parts, then cut
points are called Percentiles. 25th percentile is the Q1, 50th percentile
is the Median (Q2) and the 75th percentile of the data is Q3.
In notations, percentiles of a data is the ((n+1)/100)p th observation
of the data, where p is the desired percentile and n is the number of
observations of data.
Coefficient of Variation: The standard deviation of data divided by its
mean. It is usually expressed in percent.
Coefficient of Variation =

100
x

Five Number Summary

Five Number Summary: The five number summary of a distribution
consists of the smallest (Minimum) observation, the first quartile (Q1),
The median(Q2), the third quartile, and the largest (Maximum)
observation written in order from smallest to largest.
Box Plot: A box plot is a graph of the five number summary. The
central box spans the quartiles. A line within the box marks the
median. Lines extending above and below the box mark the
smallest and the largest observations (i.e., the range). Outlying
samples may be additionally plotted outside the range.

Boxplot
Distribution of Age in Month

Choosing a Summary
The five number summary is usually better than the mean and standard
deviation for describing a skewed distribution or a distribution with
extreme outliers. The mean and standard deviation are reasonable for
symmetric distributions that are free of outliers.
In real life we cant always expect symmetry of the data. Its a common
practice to include number of observations (n), mean, median, standard
deviation, and range as common for data summarization purpose. We
can include other summary statistics like Q1, Q3, Coefficient of variation
if it is considered to be important for describing data.

Shape of Data
Shape of data is measured by
Skewness
Kurtosis

Skewness
Measures asymmetry of data
Positive or right skewed: Longer right tail
Negative or left skewed: Longer left tail

Let x1 , x2 ,...xn be n observations. Then,

n

Skewness

n ( xi x ) 3

i 1

(x x)
i 1

3/ 2

Kurtosis
Measures peakedness of the distribution of
data. The kurtosis of normal distribution is 0.

Let x1 , x2 ,...xn be n observations. Then,

n

Kurtosis

n ( xi x ) 4

i 1

(x x)
i 1

Summary of the Variable Age in

the given data set

84

Mode

84

Standard Deviation

30.22979318

Sample Variance

913.8403955

Kurtosis
Skewness

-1.183899591
0.389872725
95

Minimum

48

Maximum

143

10
0

Range

Median

3.902649518

Standard Error

Histogram of Age

90.41666667

Number of Subjects

Mean

Sum
Count

5425
60

40

60

80

100
Age in Month

120

140

160

Summary of the Variable Age in

the given data set

100
80
60

Age(month)

120

140

Boxplot of Age in Month

Class Summary (First Part)

So far we have learnedStatistics and data presentation/data summarization
Graphical Presentation: Bar Chart, Pie Chart, Histogram, and Box Plot
Numerical Presentation: Measuring Central value of data (mean,
median, mode etc.), measuring dispersion (standard deviation,
variance, co-efficient of variation, range, inter-quartile range etc),
quartiles, percentiles, and five number summary
Any questions ?

Design of Survey Research

Choose an appropriate mode of
response
Reliable primary modes
Personal interview
Telephone interview
Mail survey

Less reliable self-selection modes (not

appropriate for making inferences about
the population)
Television survey
Internet survey
Printed survey on newspapers and magazines
Product or serviceChap
questionnaires
Basic Business
1-42
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Design of Survey Research

Identify broad categories

(continu
ed)

List complete and non-overlapping

categories that reflect the theme

Formulate accurate questions

Make questions clear and unambiguous.
Use universally-accepted definitions

Test the survey

Pilot test the survey on a small group of
participants to assess clarity and length

Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-43

Design of Survey Research

Write a cover letter

(continu
ed)

State the goal and purpose of the survey

Explain the importance of a response
Provide assurance of respondents
anonymity
Offer incentive gift for respondent
participation

Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-44

Reasons for Drawing a Sample

Less time consuming than a census
Less costly to administer than a
census
Less cumbersome and more
practical to administer than a
census of the targeted population

Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-45

Types of Sampling Methods

Samples

Probability Samples

Non-Probability
Samples
Judgement

Chunk

Simple
Random

Cluster
Systematic

Quota
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Stratified

Chap 1-46

Probability Sampling
Subjects of the sample are chosen
based on known probabilities
Probability Samples

Simple
Random
Basic Business
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Systematic
Chap 1-47

Stratified

Cluster

Simple Random Samples

Every individual or item from the
frame has an equal chance of being
selected
Selection may be with replacement or
without replacement
Samples obtained from table of
random numbers or computer random
number generators
Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-48

Systematic Samples
Decide on sample size: n
Divide frame of N individuals into
groups of k individuals: k=n/n
Randomly select one individual from
the 1st group
Select every k-th individual thereafter
N = 64
n=8
k=8

Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

First Group
Chap 1-49

Stratified Samples
Population divided into two or more
groups according to some common
characteristic
Simple random sample selected from
each group
The two or more samples are
combined into one

Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-50

Cluster Samples
Population divided into several
clusters, each representative of the
population
Simple random sample selected from
each
Population
The samples are combined into
one
divided
into 4
clusters.

Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-51

Advantages and Disadvantages

Simple random sample and systematic
sample
Simple to use
May not be a good representation of the
populations underlying characteristics

Stratified sample
Ensures representation of individuals across
the entire population

Cluster sample
More cost effective
Less efficient (need larger sample to acquire
the same level of
precision)
Basic Business
Chap 1-52
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Evaluating Survey Worthiness

What is the purpose of the survey?
Is the survey based on a probability
sample?
Coverage error appropriate frame
Nonresponse error follow up
Measurement error good questions
elicit good responses
Sampling error always exists
Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-53

Types of Survey Errors

Coverage error
Non response error
Sampling error
Measurement error
Basic Business
Statistics, 8e 2002
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Chap 1-54

Excluded from
frame.
Follow up on
non responses.
Chance
differences from
sample to sample.
Bad Question!

Brief concept of Statistical Softwares

There are many softwares to perform statistical analysis and visualization
of data. Some of them are SAS (System for Statistical Analysis), S-plus,
R, Matlab, Minitab, BMDP, Stata, SPSS, StatXact, Statistica, LISREL, JMP,
GLIM, HIL, MS Excel etc. We will discuss MS Excel and SPSS in brief.
Some useful websites for more information of statistical softwareshttp://www.galaxy.gmu.edu/papers/astr1.html
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Rainer_Wuerlaender/st
atsoft.htm#archiv
http://www.R-project.org

Microsoft Excel
A Spreadsheet Application. It features calculation, graphing tools,
pivot tables and a macro programming language called VBA (Visual
Basic for Applications).
There are many versions of MS-Excel. Excel XP, Excel 2003, Excel 2007
are capable of performing a number of statistical analyses.
Starting MS Excel: Double click on the Microsoft Excel icon on the
desktop or Click on Start --> Programs --> Microsoft Excel.
Worksheet: Consists of a multiple grid of cells with numbered rows down the
page and alphabetically-tilted columns across the page. Each cell is referenced by
its coordinates. For example, A3 is used to refer to the cell in column A and row 3.
B10:B20 is used to refer to the range of cells in column B and rows 10 through 20.

Microsoft Excel
Opening a document: File Open (From a existing workbook). Change the
directory area or drive to look for file in other locations.
Creating a new workbook: FileNewBlank Document
Saving a File: FileSave
Selecting more than one cell: Click on a cell e.g. A1), then hold the Shift key
and click on another (e.g. D4) to select cells between and A1 and D4 or Click on a
cell and drag the mouse across the desired range.
Creating Formulas: 1. Click the cell that you want to enter the
formula, 2. Type = (an equal sign), 3. Click the Function Button, 4.
Select the formula you want and step through the on-screen
instructions.

fx

Microsoft Excel
Entering Date and Time: Dates are stored as MM/DD/YYYY. No need to enter
in that format. For example, Excel will recognize jan 9 or jan-9 as 1/9/2007
and jan 9, 1999 as 1/9/1999. To enter todays date, press Ctrl and ; together.
Use a or p to indicate am or pm. For example, 8:30 p is interpreted as 8:30 pm.
To enter current time, press Ctrl and : together.
Copy and Paste all cells in a Sheet: Ctrl+A for selecting, Ctrl +C for copying
and Ctrl+V for Pasting.
Sorting: Data Sort Sort By
Descriptive Statistics and other Statistical methods: ToolsData Analysis
Statistical method. If Data Analysis is not available then click on Tools Add-Ins and
then select Analysis ToolPack and Analysis toolPack-Vba

Microsoft Excel
Statistical and Mathematical Function: Start with = sign and then select
function from function wizard f x .
Inserting a Chart: Click on Chart Wizard (or InsertChart), select
chart, give, Input data range, Update the Chart options, and Select
output range/ Worksheet.
Importing Data in Excel: File open FileType Click on File
Choose Option ( Delimited/Fixed Width) Choose Options (Tab/
Semicolon/ Comma/ Space/ Other) Finish.
Limitations: Excel uses algorithms that are vulnerable to rounding and
truncation errors and may produce inaccurate results in extreme
cases.

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
A general purpose statistical package SPSS is widely used in the social
sciences, particularly in sociology and psychology.
SPSS can import data from almost any type of file to generate tabulated
reports, plots of distributions and trends, descriptive statistics, and
complex statistical analyzes.
Starting SPSS: Double Click on SPSS on desktop or ProgramSPSS.
Opening a SPSS file: FileOpen

MENUS AND TOOLBARS

Data Editor
Various pull-down menus appear at the top of the Data Editor window. These
pull-down menus are at the heart of using SPSSWIN. The Data Editor menu
items (with some of the uses of the menu) are:

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
MENUS AND TOOLBARS
FILE

used to open and save data files

EDIT

used to copy and paste data values; used to find data in a

file; insert variables and cases; OPTIONS allows the user to
set general preferences as well as the setup for the
Navigator, Charts, etc.

VIEW

user can change toolbars; value labels can be seen in cells

instead of data values

DATA

select, sort or weight cases; merge files

TRANSFORM

Compute new variables, recode variables, etc.

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
MENUS AND TOOLBARS
ANALYZE

perform various statistical procedures

GRAPHS

create bar and pie charts, etc

UTILITIES

add comments to accompany data file (and other,

advanced features)

ADD-ons

these are features not currently installed (advanced

statistical procedures)

WINDOW

switch between data, syntax and navigator windows

HELP

to access SPSSWIN Help information

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
MENUS AND TOOLBARS
Navigator (Output) Menus
When statistical procedures are run or charts are created, the output will appear
in the Navigator window. The Navigator window contains many of the pull-down
menus found in the Data Editor window. Some of the important menus in the
Navigator window include:
INSERT

used to insert page breaks, titles, charts, etc.

FORMAT

for changing the alignment of a particular portion of the output

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
Formatting Toolbar
When a table has been created by a statistical procedure, the user can edit the
table to create a desired look or add/delete information. Beginning with version
14.0, the user has a choice of editing the table in the Output or opening it in a
separate Pivot Table (DEFINE!) window. Various pulldown menus are activated
when the user double clicks on the table. These include:
EDIT

undo and redo a pivot, select a table or table body (e.g., to

change the font)

INSERT

used to insert titles, captions and footnotes

PIVOT

used to perform a pivot of the row and column variables

FORMAT

various modifications can be made to tables and cells

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
Additional menus
CHART EDITOR
SYNTAX EDITOR

used to edit a graph

used to edit the text in a syntax window

Show or hide a toolbar

Click on VIEW TOOLBARS to show it/ to hide it
Move a toolbar
Click on the toolbar (but not on one of the pushbuttons) and then drag the toolbar to
its new location
Customize a toolbar
Click on VIEW TOOLBARS CUSTOMIZE

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
Importing data from an EXCEL spreadsheet:
Data from an Excel spreadsheet can be imported into SPSSWIN as follows:
1. In SPSSWIN click on FILE OPEN DATA. The OPEN DATA FILE Dialog
Box will appear.
2. Locate the file of interest: Use the "Look In" pull-down list to identify the folder
containing the Excel file of interest
3. From the FILE TYPE pull down menu select EXCEL (*.xls).
4. Click on the file name of interest and click on OPEN or simply double-click on
the file name.
5. Keep the box checked that reads "Read variable names from the first row of
data". This presumes that the first row of the Excel data file contains variable
names in the first row. [If the data resided in a different worksheet in the Excel
file, this would need to be entered.]
6. Click on OK. The Excel data file will now appear in the SPSSWIN Data
Editor.

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
Importing data from an EXCEL spreadsheet:
7. The former EXCEL spreadsheet can now be saved as an SPSS file (FILE
SAVE AS) and is ready to be used in analyses. Typically, you would label variable
and values, and define missing values.
Importing an Access table
SPSSWIN does not offer a direct import for Access tables. Therefore, we must follow
these steps:
1. Open the Access file
2. Open the data table
3. Save the data as an Excel file
4. Follow the steps outlined in the data import from Excel Spreadsheet to SPSSWIN.
Importing Text Files into SPSSWIN
Text data points typically are separated (or delimited) by tabs or commas.
Sometimes they can be of fixed format.

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
Importing tab-delimited data
In SPSSWIN click on FILE OPEN DATA. Look in the appropriate location for
the text file. Then select Text from Files of type: Click on the file name and then
click on Open. You will see the Text Import Wizard step 1 of 6 dialog box.
You will now have an SPSS data file containing the former tab-delimited data. You
simply need to add variable and value labels and define missing values.
Exporting Data to Excel
click on FILE SAVE AS. Click on the File Name for the file to be exported. For
the Save as Type select from the pull-down menu Excel (*.xls). You will notice the
checkbox for write variable names to spreadsheet. Leave this checked as you will
want the variable names to be in the first row of each column in the Excel
spreadsheet. Finally, click on Save.

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
Running the FREQUENCIES procedure
1. Open the data file (from the menus, click on FILE OPEN DATA) of
interest.
2. From the menus, click on ANALYZE DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS
FREQUENCIES
3. The FREQUENCIES Dialog Box will appear. In the left-hand box will be a listing
("source variable list") of all the variables that have been defined in the data file. The
first step is identifying the variable(s) for which you want to run a frequency analysis.
Click on a variable name(s). Then click the [ > ] pushbutton. The variable name(s)
will now appear in the VARIABLE[S]: box ("selected variable list"). Repeat these
steps for each variable of interest.
4. If all that is being requested is a frequency table showing count, percentages
(raw, adjusted and cumulative), then click on OK.

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
Requesting STATISTICS
Descriptive and summary STATISTICS can be requested for numeric variables. To
request Statistics:
1. From the FREQUENCIES Dialog Box, click on the STATISTICS... pushbutton.
2. This will bring up the FREQUENCIES: STATISTICS Dialog Box.
3. The STATISTICS Dialog Box offers the user a variety of choices:
DESCRIPTIVES
The DESCRIPTIVES procedure can be used to generate descriptive statistics
(click on ANALYZE DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS DESCRIPTIVES). The
procedure offers many of the same statistics as the FREQUENCIES procedure,
but without generating frequency analysis tables.

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
Requesting CHARTS
One can request a chart (graph) to be created for a variable or variables included in
a FREQUENCIES procedure.
1. In the FREQUENCIES Dialog box click on CHARTS.
2. The FREQUENCIES: CHARTS Dialog box will appear. Choose the intended chart
(e.g. Bar diagram, Pie chart, histogram.
Pasting charts into Word
1. Click on the chart.
2. Click on the pulldown menu EDIT COPY OBJECTS
3. Go to the Word document in which the chart is to be embedded. Click on EDIT
PASTE SPECIAL
4. Select Formatted Text (RTF) and then click on OK
5. Enlarge the graph to a desired size by dragging one or more of the black squares
along the perimeter (if the black squares are not visible, click once on the graph).

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
BASIC STATISTICAL PROCEDURES: CROSSTABS
1. From the ANALYZE pull-down menu, click on DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS
CROSSTABS.
2. The CROSSTABS Dialog Box will then open.
3. From the variable selection box on the left click on a variable you wish to
designate as the Row variable. The values (codes) for the Row variable make up
the rows of the crosstabs table. Click on the arrow (>) button for Row(s). Next,
click on a different variable you wish to designate as the Column variable. The
values (codes) for the Column variable make up the columns of the crosstabs
table. Click on the arrow (>) button for Column(s).
4. You can specify more than one variable in the Row(s) and/or Column(s). A cross
table will be generated for each combination of Row and Column variables

Statistics Package
for the Social Science (SPSS)
Limitations: SPSS users have less control over data manipulation and
statistical output than other statistical packages such as SAS, Stata etc.
SPSS is a good first statistical package to perform quantitative research
in social science because it is easy to use and because it can be a good
starting point to learn more advanced statistical packages.