What Is Standard Deviation
In this short essay, I will define and explain the statistical technique of standard deviation. Specifically, I will discuss the use of standard deviation, as it is commonly used in business.
Simply put, standard deviation is based on deviations from the mean. Standard deviation is the square root of the variance. The similar concept of variance is the arithmetic mean of deviations from the mean. These deviations from the mean are squared. Squaring standard deviations eliminates the possibility of having negative numbers. Standard deviation is symbolized by the Greek letter sigma.
Standard deviation reveals how numbers vary compared to their mean. For example, numbers can be ...
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employees was less spread out, or inconsistent, than the amounts contributed by employees in New York.
Practically speaking, standard deviation measures the amount of variation within any group of numbers. These numbers can represent many sorts of data that are used within the broad umbrella of business statistics. These can include stock prices, customer ages, or even the cost of widgets. Standard deviation is used to determine the risk of securities, and appears frequently in studies on the performance of investments.
In summary, standard deviation is used frequently in business. Standard deviation is simply the measure of numbers vary in comparison to their mean, and is calculated as the square root of the variance.
Works Cited
Mason, Robert D. and Lind, Douglas D. Statistical Techniques in Business and Economics, 8th ed. Homewood, IL: Irwin. 1993.
Mason, Robert D. Statistics: an introduction, 2nd ed. San Diego, California: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, ...
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"What Is Standard Deviation." Essayworld.com. July 17, 2015. Accessed June 19, 2025. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/What-Is-Standard-Deviation/104789.
"What Is Standard Deviation." Essayworld.com. July 17, 2015. Accessed June 19, 2025. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/What-Is-Standard-Deviation/104789.
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