Which statistic is a measure of central tendency?

Which statistic is a measure of central tendency?

• A. Mean
• B. Standard deviation
• C. Variance
• D. Range

Answer: (A)

Central tendency describes a typical or central value around which data cluster. The mean is the average value of the data and serves as a standard measure of this central location. It is computed by summing all observations and dividing by the number of observations, effectively placing the balance point of the data on a single value. The other statistics shown here—standard deviation, variance, and range—do not describe where the data center lie; they describe how spread out the data are: standard deviation measures average distance from the mean, variance is that distance squared, and range captures the gap between the smallest and largest values. Therefore, the mean best represents a central tendency.

Central tendency describes a typical or central value around which data cluster. The mean is the average value of the data and serves as a standard measure of this central location. It is computed by summing all observations and dividing by the number of observations, effectively placing the balance point of the data on a single value. The other statistics shown here—standard deviation, variance, and range—do not describe where the data center lie; they describe how spread out the data are: standard deviation measures average distance from the mean, variance is that distance squared, and range captures the gap between the smallest and largest values. Therefore, the mean best represents a central tendency.