Problem-Solving and Data AnalysisMediumMeasure most affected by an outlier
Problem-Solving and Data Analysis practice question
A data set of 20 values has one value far larger than all the others. Which of the following measures is most affected by that one value?
- A. The meanCorrect
- B. The median
- C. The mode
- D. None of them is affected
Answer: A. The mean
The mean adds every value, so one huge value pulls it up. The median depends only on the middle values, and the mode on the most frequent value.
Why the other answers are wrong
- B. The median
- The median is the middle value; one extreme value at the end doesn't move it much.
- C. The mode
- A single unusual value can't become the most frequent one.
- D. None of them is affected
- The mean is certainly affected.
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