Standard Deviation in One Direction

In summary, the speaker is looking to calculate the average and standard deviation of an event, but is unsure how to handle the boundary of zero time in the data. They suggest using a "semi-infinite interval" or researching probability distributions, and ask if there is a distribution that can account for this issue. They also mention that the interquartile range may be a better measure for skewed distributions.
  • #1
andrewcheong
9
0
I need to calculate the average time of an event, and I'd like to calculate standard deviation as well. The problem is - there is no such thing as negative time - zero is a boundary - so how does it make sense if the average is 4000us (microseconds) and the stdev is 5000us?

Is there a different measure that I should be using when there is a boundary on one-side, like some sort of a one-directional standard deviation? "Semi-infinite interval" comes to mind, and I Wikipedia'ed such probability distributions for more information, but I'm not sure what to make of it.

Thanks in advance!
 
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  • #2
Do you have a distribution in mind that actually does that? Sometimes if the distribution is badly skewed the interquartile range gives a better description than the standard deviation.
 

1. What is standard deviation in one direction?

Standard deviation in one direction is a statistical measure that represents the amount of variation or dispersion of data points from the mean in only one direction. It is used to measure the consistency or variability of a set of data values.

2. How is standard deviation in one direction calculated?

The standard deviation in one direction is calculated by taking the square root of the sum of squared differences between each data point and the mean, divided by the total number of data points. The square root is taken in order to get the deviation in the same units as the original data.

3. What does a high standard deviation in one direction indicate?

A high standard deviation in one direction indicates that the data points are spread out over a wide range, meaning there is a lot of variability in the data. This could suggest that the data is not very consistent or that there may be outliers present.

4. Can standard deviation in one direction be negative?

No, standard deviation in one direction cannot be negative. It is always a positive value since it represents the distance of data points from the mean in only one direction.

5. How is standard deviation in one direction used in research and analysis?

Standard deviation in one direction is commonly used in research and analysis to understand the consistency or variability of a data set. It can also be used to compare the variability of different data sets and to identify outliers that may affect the overall results of the study.

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