Part 14:
Tables (General)

Making a table of data, or tabulating data, is a very important skill. If information is presented in a purely haphazard fashion it is very difficult to make sense of it.

Putting the information into a table is the first step in making sense of the data before going on to draw charts or graphs, or carry out any analysis.

Contingency Tables

Example 14a

In a survey 87 people, 48 of them women, were asked if they wore seat belts when driving their car. 11 of the women and 14 of the men admitted to not wearing seat belts. Present this information in an organised fashion.

Solution:

A table is clearly required here. We are dealing with two 'variables' - gender (women and men) and seat belts (wear or not) so a simple two-way table will suffice. Tables of this type are called contingency tables, because they cover (or at least try to cover) every eventuality.