Contingency table

Definition

A contingency table, also known as a cross-tabulation or crosstab, is a type of table in a matrix format that displays the frequency distribution of variables. It is commonly used to analyze the relationship between two categorical variables.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. A contingency table helps in determining if there is an association between two categorical variables.
2. The structure of a contingency table includes rows and columns representing different categories of the variables being analyzed.
3. The Chi-Square Test of Independence is often used with contingency tables to test for statistical independence between the variables.
4. Each cell in a contingency table represents the frequency count of occurrences for specific combinations of the variables' categories.
5. Marginal totals, located at the margins (end) of rows and columns, provide the total counts for each category.

Review Questions

• What is the purpose of using a contingency table?
• How do you interpret the cells within a contingency table?
• What statistical test is commonly associated with analyzing contingency tables?

Related terms

Chi-Square Test:

A statistical test used to determine whether there is a significant association between two categorical variables.

Frequency Distribution:

A summary that shows how frequently each value occurs within a data set.

Categorical Variable:

A variable that can take on one of a limited, fixed number of possible values and assigns each individual or other unit of observation to a particular group or nominal category.