24/03/2025, 21:06 Bivariate Data Definition, Analysis & Examples - Lesson | Study.

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Bivariate Data Definition, Analysis & Examples

Contributors: Travis Hartin, Cathryn Jackson

Learn what bivariate data is. See a comparison of univariate vs. bivariate. Understand what a bivariate analysis
is.

Table of Contents

 What is Bivariate Data?

 Bivariate Relationship

 What is a Bivariate Analysis?

 Types of Analysis for Bivariate Data

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What is Bivariate Data?

In a scientific study, researchers collect information about their variables of interest in the form
of data. The data that is collected can be univariate or bivariate, depending on the nature of the
study.

Univariate data: Uni means one and variate is another word for a variable. This refers to an instance
in which a single variable is examined or described. For example, a researcher may measure the amount
of time it takes people to complete a crossword puzzle as the sole variable of interest.

Bivariate data: Bi means two. Therefore, bivariate data involves studying and comparing two
separate variables. For example, a researcher may record how long it takes people to complete a
crossword puzzle while measuring the stress levels of the participants. In this example, the two
variables that the researcher is examining are time and stress.

Univariate vs. Bivariate

As previously mentioned, univariate data involves collecting information about a single variable.
Here are more examples of univariate data:

Recording gender as students enter a room.

Recording age as voters enter a polling booth.

Asking participants to report their favorite type of music.

Univariate data is often used to understand the characteristics of a population, such as central
tendency and variability. It can also be used to describe the basic findings of an experiment,
such as reporting the mean and standard deviation for individual variables.

Univariate data analysis is not used to compare the relationship between different variables. To
do so, researchers use bivariate data analyses.

Bivariate Relationship
Bivariate data is used to look for relationships between variables. One of the main purposes of
determining whether or not two variables are related is to see if one variable causes the other. A
causal link between two variables is typically found by determining if changes in one variable are
caused by changes in another. This type of research involves two basic types of variables:

Independent variable: The variable that a researcher manipulates in an experiment. The researcher
predicts that changing the independent variable causes a meaningful change in another variable.

Dependent variable: The variable that a researcher predicts will change by manipulating the
independent variable. The important thing to note is that the researcher does not directly change this
variable; it is changed or controlled by an outside factor (often the independent variable).

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For example, a researcher is interested in whether or not students' attitudes toward a statistics
class change based on the time of the class. To answer this question, the research measures
students' attitudes from a morning class and an evening class. The researcher finds that
students in the evening class have a more positive attitude toward statistics than students in the
morning class.

What are the independent and dependent variables in the previous example? The independent
variable is the time of the class because it is the variable that was manipulated by the
researcher. Students' attitudes toward statistics are the dependent variable, or the variable that
the researcher predicted might change in relation to the independent variable.

Bivariate Data Examples

Now, take a moment to look at a few bivariate data examples.

Figure 1 - This is an example of bivariate data involving two different variables.

Figure 1 shows the results of a study that measured anxiety levels and feelings of loneliness.

Figure 2 - This data involves a comparison of time spent studying and exam grades.

Figure 2 shows the results of a study that compared the amount of time students spent studying
and their exam grades.

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Figure 3 - This is a graphical representation of bivariate data.

Figure 3 is a graphical representation of bivariate data. It shows the relationship between age
and vocabulary scores in a sample of preschoolers. We will return to the idea of graphing
bivariate data later.

What is a Bivariate Analysis?

Data analysis is the process of organizing, describing, and evaluating data in order to look for
information that might help researchers make conclusions about various phenomena. It is used
to help determine whether a particular research finding represents a real-world quality or some
type of statistical fluke or error.

Types of Analysis for Bivariate Data

There are different bivariate data analyses.

Scatter Plot
A scatter plot is a graph used to show the values associated with two variables. As an example,
take a moment to look at the graph from a previous example:

Figure 4 - The independent variable goes on the x-axis and the dependent variable goes on the y-axis.

In this particular example, we have already identified age as the independent variable and
vocabulary as the dependent variable. Notice that the independent is on the horizontal axis (i.e.,
the x-axis) and the dependent variable is on the vertical axis (i.e., the y-axis). This is a rule-of-
thumb you should keep in mind when making and interpreting these types of graphs.

Take a moment to examine the following example for how to create a scatter plot.

Imagine you are interested in whether or not running influences how much people sleep. To
answer this question, you have people run as many laps as they can and then record how many
hours they sleep the following night. You obtained the following data:

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Figure 5 - Data that represents hours of sleep and number of laps ran.

Let's graph this data on a scatter plot one data point at a time. Each participant will be
represented on the graph in accord to where X (i.e., laps ran) and Y (i.e., hours slept) intercept.
First, plot the point where X=2 and Y=4 meet on the graph.

Figure 6 - The point where X=2 and Y=4 meet on the graph.

Then, plot the point where X=3 and Y=5 meet on the graph.

Figure 7 - The point where X=3 and Y=5 meet is added to the graph.

Do the same for where X=4 and Y=6 meet on the graph.

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Figure 8 - The point where X=4 and Y=6 meet is added to the graph.

Finally, plot the point where X=5 and Y=7 meet on the graph.

Figure 9 - The last data point is plotted on the graph.

Correlation Analysis
A correlation analysis is a statistical test used to determine whether or not two variables are
related. It does this by comparing scores on two different measures to tell if changes in one
influence changes in the other. Variables can be correlated in one of two ways:

A positive correlation is a relationship in which two variables move in the same direction. For example,
scores from the ACT are positively correlated with college GPA. In other words, students who have
higher ACT scores also tend to have a higher college GPA.

A negative correlation is a relationship in which two variables move in the opposite direction. In other
words, a negative correlation occurs when high scores on one scale are accompanied by low scores on
another scale (or vice versa). For example, a researcher finds that students who miss class more often
score lower on final exams. As absences go up, final exam scores go down.

A very common saying in statistics and research methodology courses is correlation does not
equal causation. Correlation analysis can only indicate whether or not two variables are related.
To understand why, consider the two previous examples:

Scoring high on the ACT does not cause a higher GPA. There has to be some other explanatory
variable(s) that links ACT scores and GPA, such as intelligence or conscientiousness.

Missing class does not cause one to score lower on a final exam. As in the previous example, there
are other factors linking these variables. Students may not be as likely to ask a teacher to clarify a
confusing concept if they do not attend class. Or, a student might miss class due to poor health, which
may also hinder their test performance.

A scatter plot is often used to graph correlational data. For example:

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Figure 10 - An example of a positive correlation.

Figure 10 is an example of a positive correlation. You can tell by the general direction of the
data. Scores on the y-axis increase as scores on the x-axis increase. This creates a slope that is
moving upwards.

Figure 11 - An example of a negative correlation.

Figure 11 is an example of a negative correlation. Notice the general direction of the data in this
graph. Scores on the y-axis decrease as scores on the x-axis increase. This creates a slope that is
moving downward.

Figure 12 - An example of when two variables are not correlated.

Figure 12 is an example of what a scatterplot looks like when two variables are not correlated.
Notice that there is no discernable increasing or decreasing pattern in the data. The data looks
randomly scattered on the graph.

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Regression Analysis
Regression analysis is a statistical test used to determine if one variable can predict the outcome
of another variable. It does this by determining whether or not scores from one type of measure
reliably correspond to scores from another measure. For example, scores from various
standardized tests (e.g., ACT) can be used to predict other measures of academic achievement
(e.g., GPA). In fact, this is one reason why various academic programs often require students to
take one of these tests prior to admission. Scoring high enough on these tests is considered an
indicator that a student can succeed in an academic setting.

Lesson Summary
Researchers collect data as a way to learn more about various real-world phenomena. Data
analysis often involves univariate and bivariate analyses depending on the goal of the
researcher. Univariate data involves analyzing a single variable and is often used to describe
samples and populations. For example, researchers often report the mean and standard
deviation for individual variables as a general description of the participants in a study.
Bivariate data involves analyzing two separate variables and is used to determine whether or
not two variables are related.

There are different methods of bivariate data analysis. A scatter plot is a graphical
representation of bivariate data that illustrates the relationship between two variables on an x
and y-axis. A correlation analysis is used to determine whether or not two variables are
associated. Scatter plots and correlational analyses are often used in conjunction to interpret
whether a correlation is positive or negative. Regression analysis is when one variable is used to
predict the outcome of another variable.

Video Transcript

Bivariate Data
Mindy is a college student who works as a teacher's assistant at an elementary school. She is
helping the third grade teacher grade a reading test. Mindy notices that the grades on the
reading test are all over the place, meaning that there are some students who did very well,
some students who did average and some students who did poorly. These are the results of the
test: 55, 32, 67, 100, 98, 75, 46, 82, 72, 93, 44, 26, 67.

Later, Mindy is grading a questionnaire. The students are answering questions about what they
do at home. One of the questions asks the student to track how much they read outside of
school. These are the number of hours that each student reported on his or her questionnaire:
1, 2, 0, 3, 4, 6, 1, 2, 5, 0, 1, 1, 2.

Mindy wonders if there is a relationship between the number of hours a student spends each
week reading and the reading test scores.

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In this lesson, you will be learning about the definition and uses of bivariate data. We will also
compare and contrast the characteristics of univariate data and bivariate data.

Bivariate Data Defined

Bivariate data deals with two variables that can change and are compared to find relationships.
If one variable is influencing another variable, then you will have bivariate data that has an
independent and a dependent variable. This is because one variable depends on the other for
change. An independent variable is a condition or piece of data in an experiment that can be
controlled or changed. A dependent variable is a condition or piece of data in an experiment
that is controlled or influenced by an outside factor, most often the independent variable.

This is very different from univariate data, which is one variable in a data set that is analyzed to
describe a scenario or experiment.

For example, if Mindy was studying for a college test and tracks her study time and her test
scores, she might see that the more time she spends studying, the better her test scores
become. Therefore, in this scenario, Mindy's test scores are the dependent variable because
they depend on the number of hours she studies. Likewise, the number of study hours would be
considered the independent variable. For that reason, we can see the relationship in this
bivariate data set:

Data set of study time and test scores

In this case, we can compare the number of hours the third grade students spend reading with
his or her test score, like this:

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Data set of reading hours and test scores

We can also display this data visually, like this:

The data set can be displayed visually.

Notice that most of the points increase both vertically and horizontally. You may notice that we
have graphed the number of reading hours on the x-axis, horizontally, and the test scores on the
y-axis, vertically. When a bivariate data set shows an overall increase in numbers like this, it is
called a positive correlation, where the dependent variables and independent variables in a
data set increase or decrease together.

This means that there is a positive relationship between the number of hours spent reading
during the week and the test score of the student. In other words, the more a student reads, the
better they score on the reading test. Therefore, in this case the independent variable is the
amount the student reads during the week, because that is something they can control. The
dependent variable is the score on the test; they can only control this variable if they change the
independent variable.

If the numbers sloped downward, like the bivariate data in the graph below, then you have a
data set with a negative correlation, where the dependent variables and independent variables
in a data set either increase or decrease opposite from one another. That means if the

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independent variable decreases, then the dependent variable would increase and vice versa.

This graph shows a negative correlation.

If there is no relationship between the numbers, as shown in the graph below, then the data set
has no correlation. You can learn more about correlation in the Regression & Correlation
Chapter of this course!

There is no correlation in this data set.

Understanding Bivariate and Univariate Data

The third graders in Mindy's class are studying plants. Each student records the amount of water
they give the plant each day and the height of the plant. Are the students studying bivariate
data? Yes, they are studying two separate variables in which each variable can change.

Let's look at the characteristics of bivariate data in comparison to univariate data. First, bivariate
data deals with two variables while univariate data deals with only one variable. You can
remember this by looking at the prefix 'bi,' which means two; just like the word bicycle means

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that there are two wheels. If Mindy wanted to collect data on the ages of the students in her
class, that would be univariate data because she is only looking at one data set with one
variable.

Second, bivariate data and univariate data serve two different functions or purposes. The
primary purpose of bivariate data is to compare the two sets of data to find a relationship
between the two variables. Remember, if one variable influences the change in another variable,
then you have an independent and dependent variable. The primary function or purpose of
univariate data is to describe an experiment. If we wanted to describe the ages of a third grader,
then we would collect the ages of third grade students and then analyze the data. Since there is
only one variable in this experiment, the data is univariate.

Third, bivariate data and univariate data can be analyzed using visual representations. Although
both types of data can be displayed in a multitude of visual representations, let's talk about the
most common ones you will see. You will probably see bivariate data represented in scatterplots
like you saw in an earlier example. For univariate data, there are many ways to display
information. You may see univariate data in a stem-and-leaf display or in a box-and-whisker
plot.

Lesson Summary
Mindy can find many examples of both univariate and bivariate data in her classroom. Bivariate
data deals with two variables that can change and are compared to find relationships. If one
variable is influencing another variable, then you will have bivariate data that has an
independent and dependent variable. An independent variable is a condition or piece of data
in an experiment that can be controlled or changed. A dependent variable is a condition or
piece of data in an experiment that is controlled or influenced by an outside factor, most often
the independent variable.

Bivariate data deals with two variables. The primary purpose of bivariate data is to compare the
two sets of data or to find a relationship between the two variables. Bivariate data is most often
analyzed visually using scatterplots.

On the other hand, univariate data is when one variable is analyzed to describe a scenario or
experiment. Univariate data only has one data set with one variable. The primary function or
purpose of univariate data is to describe an experiment. You may see univariate data in a stem-
and-leaf display or in a box-and-whisker plot.

Lastly, when a bivariate data set shows a relationship, it can be either a positive or negative
correlation. A positive correlation is where the dependent variables and independent variables
in a data set increase together. A negative correlation is where the dependent variables and
independent variables in a data set either increase or decrease opposite from one another. If
there is no relationship between the numbers, as shown in this graph, then the data set has no
correlation:

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No correlation

Learning Outcomes
Through this lesson, expand your knowledge along with your capacity to:

Define bivariate data and identify how it is used

Characterize the independent and dependent variables in bivariate data

Know what is meant by positive correlation, negative correlation and no correlation

Compare and contrast bivariate and univariate data

Frequently Asked Questions

What does bivariate mean in statistics?

"Bi" means two and "variate" is another word for a variable. So, bivariate refers to a
statistical analysis that involves the comparison of two separate variables.

What is bivariate data analysis?

Bivariate data analysis is a statistical test that involves two separate variables. It is used to
determine whether or not two variables are related.

What is an example of bivariate data?

An example of bivariate data is data collected from a study that compares levels of anxiety
to the number of times participants pace back and forth in a room.

What are the uses of bivariate data?

Bivariate data can be used to determine whether or not two variables are related. If a
relationship between variables is established, bivariate data is used to determine if there is
a causal link between those variables.

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