Critical
Thinking

Understanding Statistics

1. I have adequate control or input over my work duties.
  • Never....................8%
  • Rarely....................8%
  • Sometimes......... 26%
  • Often.....................29%
  • Very often.............29%
[This is a positive skew with insignificant differences among the top 3 results.
The conclusion is "I often have adequate control..."]
2. Conditions at work are unpleasant or sometimes even unsafe.
  • Never....................48%
  • Rarely....................23%
  • Sometimes..........18%
  • Often.......................6%
  • Very often...............6%
[This is a steep negative skew with significant differences among the bottom 3 results.
The conclusion is "Conditions at work are never unpleasant/unsafe"]
The difference between 1 and 2 is the slope. The results in 1 are positive and flat. The results in 2 are negative and steep. Notice also that 2 requires a negative response to indication a positive condition. This is built-in bias.
3. I receive appropriate recognition or rewards for good performance.
  • Never....................11%
  • Rarely....................15%
  • Sometimes...........30%
  • Often......................26%
  • Very often.............18%
[Random distribution for 5 answers predicts each would receive 20% of the vote.
"Rarely", "Often", and "Very Often" are not significantly different from 20%.
The result has a bimodal neutral skew. The same number of people say "Sometimes" as don't say "Never".

The conclusion is "no result" and the item needs to be rewritten.]

The answer you get depends on the question you ask.