Introduction to Statistics: Types of Variables, Central Tendency and Measures of Dispersion by S. M. Munsaka, PhD - Department of Biomedical Sciences School of Health Sciences University of Zambia - Biostatistics-unza

Description

This document is a lecture presentation on introductory biostatistics, authored by S. M. Munsaka, PhD, from the Department of Biomedical Sciences within the University of Zambia's School of Health Sciences. Delivered on 4th June 2020, the material is designed for tertiary-level students in biomedical sciences, public health, and related fields. It covers fundamental statistical concepts, starting with the goals of estimation and inference, the importance of random sampling and independent data, and an introduction to different types of studies, including observational studies and randomized clinical trials. A core focus is the classification and description of data types: categorical (nominal and ordinal), discrete, and continuous variables. The lecture provides detailed guidance on how to summarize these different data types, with particular emphasis on describing the center (using mean and median) and the spread or variability (using range, interquartile range, variance, and standard deviation) of continuous data. It explains the conditions under which the median is preferable to the mean, introduces graphical summaries like boxplots and histograms, and explores relationships between variables through scatter plots and correlation coefficients. This comprehensive resource equips University of Zambia students with the essential statistical vocabulary and analytical tools needed to describe data accurately, interpret summary tables commonly found in research papers, and lay the groundwork for more advanced inferential statistics, all within the context of biomedical and public health research. Utilize these notes to build a strong foundation in data analysis for your academic and professional development.