Box and Whisker Diagrams using Excel 2007
This page has been requested by Julie: here is what she said to me:
Hello Duncan,
Thank you so much for providing this information. Excel has so much packaged within it and it's not always easy to discover what you want.
Question: can you update your box plot pages for EXCEL 2007, please? There is no longer a Wizard and I am having trouble following the instructions. The fact that EXCEL was not written for epidemiologists makes life just that bit harder.
With thanks,
Julie
From my initial page on BoxPlots, http://www.duncanwil.co.uk/boxplot.html:
A boxplot, or box and whisker diagram, provides a simple graphical summary of a set of data. It shows a measure of central location (the median), two measures of dispersion (the range and inter quartile range), the skewness (from the orientation of the median relative to the quartiles) and potential outliers (marked individually). Boxplots are especially useful when comparing two or more sets of data.
http://www.coventry.ac.uk/ec/~nhunt/boxplot.htm
Despite the need for BoxPlots by many people, even Excel 2007 does not provide us with a template from which to plot them.
The purpose of this page, therefore, is to let you have a copy of the PDF file I have put together to demonstrate how easy it is to use Excel 2007 to create Box and Whisker Charts, BoxPlots. The file is fully worked and contains screenshots to show you every step you need to take to create a BoxPlot. I have also included an additional example for your to test your new skils on.
More than that, you will see that I have used TWO methods of preparing a boxplot: method one is relatively simple and method two is a little more difficult. You will see that the style of boxplots prepared by these two methods is a little different too. Two for the price of one!
Download the PDF file by clicking here
Duncan Williamson
6th July 2009 updated 9th July 2009
© Webmaster Duncan Williamson 2009