What are the best practices for using variance in data analysis?

What are the best practices for using variance in data analysis?

When using variance in data analysis, it's important to ensure your data is normally distributed, as variance is sensitive to outliers.

How do I handle outliers when calculating variance?

You can handle outliers by using robust statistical methods, such as trimming or winsorizing the data before calculating variance.

Are there specific scenarios where variance is not a good measure?

Yes, variance may not be suitable for non-normally distributed data or when the data has significant outliers.

What alternatives to variance can I use?

Alternatives include the interquartile range (IQR) or median absolute deviation (MAD), which are less affected by outliers.