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Descriptive Statistics

One of the best features of statistics is how versatile it is. This discipline touches almost every subject, from psychology to sports management, statistics have a wide range of interdisciplinary applications. However, this can also be the very thing that makes it hard to understand and approach. Let’s start by breaking down the two main types of statistics, illustrated below. 
inferenctial_descriptive
As you can see, there are some major differences between the types of statistical analyses possible for descriptive and inferential statistics. Inferential statistics uses a data set to try to predict the future or predict for values of an independent variable outside of the data set.Descriptive statistics, on the other hand, measures statistics about what is inside the data set. While this may be confusing, the table below goes through an example that can clear up the difference between the two types of statistics.

 

Hours Spent Studying Exam Score
3 70
4 80
5 90

 

With descriptive statistics, we can calculate two types of measures and illustrate descriptive properties of the dataset.

 

Description Example
Measures of central tendency Measures the centre of the dataset, such as mode, median and mean The mean exam score is: 80
Measures of spread Measures how far spread the data, such as the variance and standard deviation The standard deviation of the exam score is: 10
Descriptive visualizations Illustrates descriptive characteristics, such as pie charts, bar charts, line graphs You can plot these points on a line graph

 

Correlation Definition

The correlation coefficient, also known as the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient, is a descriptive statistic. It measures the strength of the linear relationship between two variables. A linear relationship is one that can be explained by a linear equation. Take a look at the two images below.

 

correlation_graph       quadratic_formula

The variables in the first line graph have a relationship that can be explained by a linear equation, which is plotted by the straight line. The variables in the second line graph, on the other hand, have a relationship that follows the shape of a parabola. This type of relationship can be described by a quadratic equation.

 

Correlation Formula

In order to calculate the correlation, you should first understand the definition of covariance. Take the image below as an example. This image depicts the values of two variables on a line graph: the grade on the final exam and hours of attendance.

regression_example_correlation

This pattern is described as a positive pattern: as the number of hours of attendance increases, the number of points on the final exam also increases. Here, we can say that the two variables are moving together. When we describe the movement of two variables, we are using the covariance. In statistics, the covariance tells us how two variables move together and it is calculated as the following.

covariance_formula

 

We can use the covariance of two variables to calculate the correlation of two variables. The formula for the correlation is the following.

regression_formula

The table below describes the elements within the formula.

 

Element Description
The sample covariance of x and y
The standard deviation of x
The standard deviation of y
n The sample size of the data

 

Types of Correlation

The correlation coefficient can tell us how strongly related two variables are. However, how exactly can we interpret this correlation coefficient? In other words, is there any way we can tell what is a strong and weak relationship?

correlation_example

The image below shows the general rules of thumb for interpreting the correlation coefficient. Everything in between these numbers, however, is a bit subjective. However, there are some general guidelines you can adhere to, which are summarized in the table below.

 

-1 -0.8 -0.5 -0.3 0 0.3 0.5 0.8 1
Perfect negative correlation Strong negative correlation Moderate negative correlation Weak negative correlation No correlation Weak positive correlation Moderate positive correlation Strong positive correlation Perfect positive correlation

 

When the terms positive and negative are referred to in statistics, they don’t mean the same thing as they do in regular life. In statistics, positive and negative generally refers to the direction.

 

Type Movement Interpretation
Positive Together If one variable decreases, the other one decreases too (and vice versa)
Negative Opposite If one variable decreases, the other one increases (and vice versa)

 

Correlation versus Causation

It is quite common to see people mistake correlation and causation. This isn’t without reason - the two can seem pretty similar. However, if we take a look back at the formula for the correlation, we can see that these two notions don’t have too much alike. Causation is defined as one thing causing or producing an effect on another thing. When you turn on the light switch, this causes the light to turn on.

 

However, correlation is simply the covariance over the multiplication of the standard deviations of the x and y variables. It tells us about the direction of the movement of x and y scaled by the standard deviations. It can only tell us about the linear association between two variables, not about whether one causes the other. One classic example is hand size and height - the two are very strongly correlated. However, this does not mean that hand size causes height - there are a number of factors that link the two.

 

Correlation Example

Let’s run through an example of correlation together. Let’s take the data set from the first example.

 

Hours Spent Studying Exam Score
3 70 -1 -10 10 1 100
4 80 0 0 0 0 0
5 90 1 10 10 1 100
Mean = 4 Mean = 80 Total 20 2 200

 

Plugging it in, we get the following:

 

\[

r(x,y) = \dfrac{20}{\sqrt{2*200}} = 1

\]

 

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Emma

Emma

I am passionate about travelling and currently live and work in Paris. I like to spend my time reading, gardening, running, learning languages and exploring new places.