First of all, an example; mean age of the children in a test is 12.93, with a standard deviation of .76.
Now, maybe I am just over thinking this, but everything I Google gives me this big convoluted explanation of what standard deviation is without addressing the kiddy pool I’m standing in.
Edit: you guys have been fantastic! This has all helped tremendously, if I could hug you all I would.
In: Mathematics
When you add and subtract a standard deviation to the mean, 68% of your data (age of participants) is within the interval.
That’s from 12.93 -. 76 all the way to 12.93+.76
If you add and subtract two standard deviations, 95% are within the interval.
That’s from 12.93 -2 * 0. 76 all the way to 12.93+2 * 0.76
If you tested another group and you got stdev >. 76 it would mean that the new group is more diverse, the ages are more spread out.
Conversely, if you tested a group with stdev<. 76 it would mean that their ages are more close to the mean value, less spread out.
Latest Answers