Brief summary of article 1
Zhang, Y., & Wang, S. (2008). Distribution of body mass index and the prevalence changes of overweight and obesity among adolescents in Shandong, China from 1985 to 2005. Annals of Human Biology, 35(5), 547–555.
In this article, the author conducts research to study the trend of BMI as well as physical growth among adolescents in China. The author established that studies concerning the BMI and growth of adolescents aged 7 years to 18 years have not been done in Shandong, China. Data was collected from national surveys conducted by the government in the years 1985, 1995 and 2005. The study focused in the collection of data about the prevalence of obesity among students in China.
It was established that BMI has been increasing over the years. It was concluded that adolescents in China are experiencing high risks of overweight and obesity. The author recommended that strategies should be developed to reverse the trend. This can be achieved by conducting periodic monitoring.
The types of graphical descriptive statistics used in the article
Simple bar charts were used in presenting the collected data. The bars represented boys and girls in rural and urban areas. The bars indicate the various groups of respondents used in the research. In addition, multiple line graphs were used to represent the distribution of ages according to the years. Tables were also used to show the relationship between urban or rural boys/girls, and the years when the data was collected.
How the level of measurement and the distribution of the data influenced the graphical descriptions presented
The data collected was at the scale level of measurement. So, it was possible to develop simple bar graphs and charts to represent the data.
A brief summary of article 2
Irigoyen, M., Glassman, M., Chen, S., & Findley, S. (2008). Early onset of overweight and obesity among low-income 1- to 5-year olds in New York City. Journal of Urban Health: Bulletin Of The New York Academy Of Medicine, 85(4), 545–554.
Childhood obesity has increased at an alarming rate. This experience has been observed among the low-income earners. Conducting research about the epidemic will help public health departments in developing strategies to combat the problem. The risk rates of obesity among childhood can be categorized according to age and gender of children. The research was conducted among children aged 1-5 years in New York.
The data showed that as children attained age, they experienced considerable risk of obesity. In addition, boys had a higher prevalence to obesity compared to girls. Therefore, it was concluded that intervention measures should be developed to protect children from early childhood obesity.
The types of graphical descriptive statistics used in the article
Stacked bar graphs have been used to express the findings of the research. In addition, stacked charts were used to explain the distribution of variables. Tables were also used in presenting the collected data.
How the level of measurement and the distribution of the data influenced the graphical descriptions presented
Data used in this survey was at the ordinal level of measurement. The stacked bar chart was used to explain how the weight categories of children were distributed. The weight clusters were categorized according to the age of the children. Similarly, the tables and clustered charts indicated the clusters of children according the age.
Insights to the Step-by-Step Guide to Week 2; problem 2.1 and 2.2
The use of SPSS helps to analyze data easily by following several steps. Descriptive statistics are developed through analysis to present the mean, median, variance, standard deviation, and other measures. The SPSS software is also used to develop charts and graphs that represent data. As such, box plots, pie charts and other graphical representations can be used to represent data (Field, 2009).
References
Field, A. P. (2009). Discovering statistics using SPSS: (and sex and drugs and rock ‘n’ roll). London: SAGE.
Irigoyen, M., Glassman, M., Chen, S., & Findley, S. (2008). Early onset of overweight and obesity among low-income 1- to 5-year olds in New York City. Journal of Urban Health: Bulletin of The New York Academy Of Medicine, 85(4), 545–554.
Zhang, Y., & Wang, S. (2008). Distribution of body mass index and the prevalence changes of overweight and obesity among adolescents in Shandong, China from 1985 to 2005. Annals of Human Biology, 35(5), 547–555.