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These consist of two categories of categorical data, namely nominal data and ordinal data. General Characteristics/Features of Categorical Data Each of these examples may have different collection and analysis techniques, but they are all ordinal data.Ĭollect Ordinal and Nominal Data with Formplus Some ordinal data examples include Likert scale, interval scale, bug severity, customer satisfaction survey data etc. Its classification under categorical data has to do with the fact that it exhibits more categorical data character. However, this order does not have a standard scale on which the difference in variables in each scale is measured.Īlthough mostly classified as categorical data, it is said to exhibit both categorical and numerical data characteristics making it in between. This is a data type with a set order or scale to it.
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Read Also: What is Nominal Data? Examples, Category Variables & Analysis 2. Although this characteristic helps in arriving at better conclusions, it sometimes poses problems for researchers as they have to deal with so much irrelevant data. Mostly collected using surveys or questionnaires, this data type is descriptive, as it sometimes allows respondents the freedom to type in responses. Examples of nominal data include name, hair colour, sex etc. Nominal data is sometimes called “labelled” or “named” data. Coined from the Latin nomenclature “Nomen” (meaning name), this data type is a subcategory of categorical data. This is a type of data used to name variables without providing any numerical value. There are two types of categorical data, namely the nominal and ordinal data. One can neither add them together nor subtract them from each other. I.e, if an organisation or agency is trying to get a biodata of its employees, the resulting data is referred to as categorical. This data is called categorical because it may be grouped according to the variables present in the biodata such as sex, state of residence, etc.Ĭategorical data can take on numerical values (such as “1” indicating Yes and “2” indicating No), but those numbers don’t have mathematical meaning. What is Categorical Data?Ĭategorical data is a collection of information that is divided into groups. Similarly, numerical data, as the name implies, deals with number variables. Although there is no restriction to the form this data may take, it is classified into two main categories depending on its nature-namely categorical and numerical data.Ĭategorical data, as the name implies, are usually grouped into a category or multiple categories. Information, in this case, could be anything which may be used to prove or disprove a scientific guess during an experiment.ĭata collected may be age, name, a person's opinion, type of pet, hair colour etc. In mathematical and statistical analysis, data is defined as a collected group of information.
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