Do z-scores have units?
Understand the Problem
The question is asking whether z-scores, a statistical measure that indicates how many standard deviations an element is from the mean, have any associated units. The high-level understanding is that z-scores are dimensionless and do not carry units since they are a ratio of a deviation to its standard deviation.
Answer
No, z-scores do not have units.
The final answer is No, z-scores do not have units.
Answer for screen readers
The final answer is No, z-scores do not have units.
More Information
Z-scores are unitless because they measure how many standard deviations an observation is from the mean, instead of representing a measurement in original units.
Tips
A common mistake is to assume z-scores have the same units as the original data when in fact they are standardized and unitless.
Sources
- What is the unit of a Z-score - Socratic - socratic.org
- Z-Score: Definition, Formula, Calculation & Interpretation - SimplyPsychology - simplypsychology.org
- Why do we divide by standard deviation when calculating z-scores - Quora - quora.com