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What is a 'frequency distribution' in statistics?

Dec 15, 2023

What is a 'frequency distribution' in statistics?

Solution by Steps

step 1

Understand the concept of a frequency distribution: A frequency distribution is a summary of how often each different value occurs in a dataset

step 2

Organize the data: The data is grouped into categories or numerical intervals, and the number of occurrences in each group is counted

step 3

Represent the data: The frequency distribution can be represented in a table or graphically, such as in a histogram or bar chart

Answer

A frequency distribution is a table or graph that displays the frequency of various outcomes in a sample.

Key Concept

Frequency Distribution

Explanation

A frequency distribution shows the number of occurrences of each value in a dataset, helping to understand the distribution of data points.

What is the formula to calculate the cumulative frequency in a frequency distribution

Solution by Steps

step 1

To calculate the cumulative frequency, start with the first interval or class in your frequency distribution

step 2

The cumulative frequency for the first interval is the same as its frequency

step 3

For each subsequent interval, add the frequency of the current interval to the cumulative frequency of the previous interval

step 4

Continue this process until you have added the frequencies for all intervals

step 5

The formula for the cumulative frequency (CF) at a given class interval is:

CF_i = f_i + CF_{i-1}

where

CF_i

is the cumulative frequency for the current interval,

f_i

is the frequency for the current interval, and

CF_{i-1}

is the cumulative frequency of the previous interval. For the first interval,

CF_1 = f_1

Answer

The cumulative frequency is calculated by adding the frequency of the current interval to the cumulative frequency of the previous interval, with the first interval's cumulative frequency being equal to its own frequency.

Key Concept

Cumulative frequency calculation in a frequency distribution

Explanation

Cumulative frequency is found by adding the frequency of each class interval to the sum of the frequencies of all the previous intervals. This process continues until the cumulative frequency for all intervals is calculated.