Measures of Central Tendency

Measures of Central Tendency

Calculating Mean

• The mean is a measure of central tendency that represents the average value of a dataset.
• It is calculated by summing up all the values in the dataset and dividing by the number of values.
• Formula: μ = (Σx) / n
• Where:
  • μ is the mean
  • Σx is the sum of all values in the dataset
  • n is the number of values in the dataset
• Example: If a dataset has the values 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, the mean would be (2 + 4 + 6 + 8 + 10) / 5 = 30 / 5 = 6

Understanding Median

• The median is a measure of central tendency that represents the middle value of a dataset when it is arranged in order.
• It is the value that separates the higher half of the data from the lower half.
• If the dataset has an odd number of values, the median is the middle value.
• If the dataset has an even number of values, the median is the average of the two middle values.
• The median is resistant to outliers, meaning that it is not affected by extreme values in the dataset.

Identifying Mode

• The mode is a measure of central tendency that represents the most frequently occurring value in a dataset.
• A dataset can have multiple modes if there are multiple values that occur with the same frequency.
• The mode is not affected by the presence of outliers in the dataset.
• Example: If a dataset has the values 1, 2, 2, 3, 4, 5, the mode would be 2, because it is the most frequently occurring value.