Organizing Qualitative Data
Raw data is just noise. Learn how to transform unorganized categorical information into meaningful tables and visual displays.
Frequency Distributions
From Raw to Organized
Raw Data is unorganized information collected directly from a source. It must be consolidated into a table to become useful.
A table that lists each category of data and the number of occurrences (count) for each.
Example: Survey Responses
| Category | Frequency |
|---|---|
| A | 4 |
| B | 3 |
| C | 2 |
| D | 1 |
| Total | 10 |
Relative Frequency
Proportions & Percentages
A Relative Frequency Distribution shows the proportion or percentage of observations in each category.
Example Calculation
If Category A has 4 occurrences out of 10 total:
Bar Graphs & Pareto Charts
Bar Graph
A graphical display where rectangles represent the frequency or relative frequency of each category.
- • Bars can be in any order
- • Bars do NOT touch (categories are discrete)
- • Height = Frequency or Relative Frequency
Pareto Chart
A specific bar graph where bars are arranged in decreasing order of frequency.
Pareto charts highlight the "vital few" vs. the "trivial many"—useful for identifying the most significant categories at a glance.
Pie Charts
Parts of a Whole
A circle divided into sectors where the area of each sector is proportional to the frequency of that category.
Example
If Category A has a relative frequency of 0.40 (40%):
The sector for Category A would span 144 degrees of the circle.
Try It Yourself
Frequency Distribution Calculator
Enter your raw qualitative data separated by commas, spaces, or new lines. The calculator will generate a complete frequency distribution table and charts.
No Data Yet
Enter some raw data above or click "Load Example" to see how it works.
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