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Frequency Distributions: A Data-Driven Learning Guide
Goal & Concept
Goal
This exercise provides an introduction to univariate analysis through frequency distributions. You will learn why basic frequency tables are important and how they are read and interpreted. The data used here give a sense of Americans' attitudes about the President in 2005.
Concept
Frequency distributions are tables that tell something about a particular variable by showing the number and percentage of people who chose a particular answer to the survey question. Examining these tables gives researchers and readers an easy summary of various characteristics of the people responding to the survey or question.
This allows for statements about the basic characteristics themselves and such tables give researchers a bit more insight into the data, such as showing when there are not enough people who answer a particular way or showing questions that a large number of people didn't answer. For example, if a researcher wants to understand whether men and women give different answers to questions about political attitudes, s/he would need to first look at a frequency distribution for the sex of the sample to make sure the survey includes both men and women and in large enough numbers to make comparisons between the two groups. Likewise, perhaps individuals' ages have something to do with their political beliefs. If a frequency distribution shows that there is no one over age 40 in the sample, the researcher will know s/he must limit conclusions to individuals age 40 and under.
Finally, a frequency distribution is a good first step for researchers who want a sense of the quality of their data. If too many people skip the question or if the frequency distribution shows that people answered in a way that doesn't make sense (for example, having a large number of people say they were older than 100 years), it will likely cause the data user to examine what is happening in the data more closely to see if there might be problems. This exercise will focus on reading basic frequency tables for learning about people's opinions.