Variables

GUESS the WORD

Arrange the following scrambled words
 1. SLEABIRVA
 2. LANONIM
 3. ROIDLAN
 4. NIRETLAV
 5. ARITO
 6. TENDPENED
 7. NIEDENPTNED

… “the foundations of quantitative

research are variables, but what are
variables?”

A variable is the characteristic or
attribute of an individual, group,
educational system, or the
environment that is of interest in a
research study. Variables can be
straightforward and easy to measure,
such as gender, age, or course of study.
Continuous and Discrete
Variables

 CONTINUOUS VARIABLE
- A variable that can take infinite number on the value
that can occur within a population.
- its values can be divided into fractions.
- ex; age, height, and temperature
 DISCRETE VARIABLE
- also known as categorical or classificatory variable.
- any variable that has a limited number of distinct values
and which cannot be divided into fractions like sex, blood group,
and number of children in the family.
Continuous Variables

Categories/Nature of the Variables
1. Interval Variable – is a measurement where the
difference between two values does have meaning.
1. Ex; The difference between a temperature in 60
degrees and 50 degrees is the same difference as
between 30 degrees and 20 degrees. The interval
between values makes sense and can be interpreted.
2. Ratio Variable – possesses the properties of interval
variable and has a clear definition of zero, indication
that there is none of that variable.
Continuous Variables

2. Ratio Variable – possesses the properties of interval

variable and has a clear definition of zero,
indication that there is none of that variable.
Ex; height, weight, and distance
Discrete Variables

1. Nominal Variable
- is a variable with no quantitative value.
- it has two or more categories but does not
imply ordering of cases.
Ex; eye color, business type, and religion

* Dichotomous – a sub type of nominal scale with only
two categories just like sex (e.g. male/female)
Discrete Variables

2. Ordinal Variable
- is a variable that has two or more categories which can be
ranked.
Ex;
1. if you asked people if they like listening to music while
studying and they could answer either “not very much”,
“much”, or “Very much”
2. Educational attainment as a variable on a survey (elementary =
1, high school = 2, college undergraduate = 3, and college
graduate = 4)
Variables in terms of Roles

 Dependent variable – a variable that changes because of
another variable; The dependent variable is the factor that
is observed and measured to determine the effect of the
independent variable; the effect or outcome variable.
Ex; affects test grades
 Independent Variable – A variable that is presumed to
cause changes in another variable; It is manipulated or
selected by the experimenter to determine its relationship
to an observed phenomenon; the causal variable
Ex; Amount of studying

 Mediating/Intervening Variable – A variable that comes
in between other variables; helps to delineate the process
through which variables affect one another. An
intervening variable is the factor that theoretically effects
observed phenomena but can not be seen, measured, or
manipulated
Ex; amount of studying leads to input and
organization of knowledge in one’s long term
memory which affects test grades

 Moderator Variable – A variable that delineates how a
relationship of interest changes under different
conditions. The term moderate variable describes a
special type of independent variable, a secondary
independent variable selected to determine if it affects
the relationship between the study’s primary
independent variable and its dependent variable.
Ex; Perhaps the relationship between studying and
test grades changes according to the level of use of a drug
such as Ritalin

 Control variable: Control variables are factors controlled
by the experimenter to cancel out or neutralized any
effect they might otherwise on the observed phenomena.
 A single study can not examine all of the variables in a
situation (situational variable) or in a person
(dispositional variable); some must be neutralized to
guarantee that they will not exert differential or
moderating effects on the relationship between the
independent variables and dependent variables.
Variables in terms of level of
measurement

 Categorical Variable – a variable that is made up of
different types of categories of a phenomenon
ex; gender is made up of two categories, male
and female
 Quantitative Variable – a variable that varies in
degree or amount of phenomenon
ex; annual income varies from 0 to a very high
level income
Examples of Variables

Phenomenon A: Study Habits
Examples of variables related to Study
Habits:
1. Number of hours spent in studying
2. Study skills
3. School environment
4. Home Environment

Phenomenon B: COVID-19 Pandemic in
Zamboanga City
Examples of variables related to COVID-19
Pandemic in Zamboanga City:
1. Number of patients with COVID
2. Number of medical frontlines
3. Medical supplies
4. Number of deaths

Phenomenon C: Poor performance of
students in the Basic Education Exit
Assessment (BEEA) Examples of variables
related to Poor performance:
1. BEEA score
2. Number of hours devoted to studying
3. Number of students in the class
4. School facilities
Evaluation

A. Using Venn Diagram, show the similarities and
differences between continuous and discrete
variable.
continuous discrete independent dependent
A. Write I if the variable is Interval, N if nominal, R if
ratio, O if ordinal.
_____ 1. Military Title

_____ 2. Temperature in degree Celcius
_____ 3. Birthplace
_____ 4. Year Level
_____ 5. Favorite type of music
_____ 6. Clothing such as hat, shirt, shoes
_____ 7. A score in 5-item quiz in math
_____ 8. Feeling for today
_____ 9. Means of transportation to school
_____ 10. How internet is used at home

Variables

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GUESS the WORD

… “the foundations of quantitative

2. Ratio Variable – possesses the properties of interval

Ex; eye color, business type, and religion

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