Measures of Location (Central Tendency)

1 Average: A value which represents the whole distribution is called average.

Averages are called measures of central tendency because averages tend to lie in the center of
the dist. Averages are also called measures of location because averages locate the center of
the dist.
2 Measures of Central Tendency: The methods which we use to measure the central tendency
are called measures of central tendency. These are also called averages which are:
1. Arithmetic mean 2. Geometric mean 3. Harmonic mean
4. Median 5. Mode
3 Arithmetic Mean: It is obtained by dividing the sum of items by their numbers. It is denoted
by 𝑥̅ . It expresses the potential of the data.
Arithmetic Mean (For ungrouped data) Arithmetic Mean (For grouped data).
∑
𝑥̅ = 𝑥𝑖 /n (Direct Method) 𝑥̅ = ∑ 𝑓𝑥𝑖 /∑ 𝑓
Q. 1. The marks obtained by 9 students are given below. Find A.M by (i) direct method,
(ii) short method, and (iii) coding method.
450, 320, 370, 460, 390, 360, 410, 480, 360
Sol:
xi (Marks)
450
320
370
460
390
360
410
480
360
3600 = ∑ 𝑥𝑖
𝑥̅ (Direct method) = ∑ 𝑥𝑖 /n = 3600/9 = 400.
Q. 2. Find the A. M of the following distribution.
Weight 65-84 85-104 105-124 125-144 145-164 165-184 185-204
f 9 10 17 10 5 4 5
Sol:
Weight f xi f xi
(Grams) (Mid point)
65-84 9 74.5 670.5
85-104 10 94.5 945.0
105-124 17 114.5 1946.5
125-144 10 134.5 1345.0
145-164 5 154.5 772.5
165-184 4 174.5 698.0
185-204 5 194.5 972.5
Totals 60 7350
 𝑥̅ (Direct method) = ∑ 𝑓𝑥𝑖 /∑ 𝑓 = 7350.0/ 60 = 122.5 grams.
4 Weighted Mean: If all values are not of equal importance then we assign then some
numerical values according to their importance called weights. If w1, w2, …, wn be the weights
∑ 𝑤𝑖 𝑥𝑖
of x1, x2, …, wn respectively then Weighted Mean = 𝑥̅ 𝑤 = .
∑ 𝑤𝑖
Q. 3. An examination candidate’s percentages are: English 73, French 82, Mathematics 57,
Science 62, and History 60. Find the candidate’s weighted mean if weights of 4, 3, 3, 1, 1 are
allotted to the subjects respectively.

Sol:
Subject Marks Weights wi xi
(xi ) (wi)
English 73 4 292 ∑ 𝑤𝑖 𝑥𝑖 831
𝑥̅ 𝑤 =
∑ 𝑤𝑖
= = 69.25
French 82 3 246 12
Maths 57 3 171
Science 62 1 62
History 60 1 60
Total 12 831
5 Combined Mean: If data is divided into k subgroups, each having n1, n2, …, nk values
∑ 𝑛𝑖 𝑥̅𝑖
along with their means 𝑥̅1 , 𝑥̅2 , …, 𝑥̅𝑘 respectively then Combined mean = 𝑥̅𝑐 =
∑ 𝑛𝑖

Q. 4. The mean heights of three sections containing 40, 37 and 43 students are 62, 58 and
61 inches respectively. Find overall mean of 120 students.
Sol:
Section No. of Means ni 𝑥̅𝑖
Students (ni ) (𝑥̅𝑖 )
A 40 62 2480 𝑥̅ = ∑ 𝑛𝑖 𝑥̅ 𝑖 7249
𝑤 ∑ 𝑛𝑖
= = 60.4 inches
B 37 58 2146 120
C 43 61 2623
Total 120 7249

6 Properties of A.M:
1. The mean of the constant (all same values) will be the same constant. i.e. E(c) = c.
2. The sum of deviation taken from mean is zero. i.e. ∑(𝑥 − 𝑥̅ ) = 0.
3. Sum of squares of deviations from mean is minimum. i.e. ∑(𝑥 − 𝑥̅ )2 ≤ ∑(𝑥 − 𝑎)2
4. Mean is affected by change of origin and scale. i. e. if x = ah+u then 𝑥̅ = ah+𝑢̅.

7 Geometric Mean: It is the nth root of the product of n non-negative values. It is suitable
averages for rates and ratios.
Geometric Mean for ungrouped data. G.M for grouped data.
𝑛
G.M = √𝑥1 . 𝑥2 … 𝑥𝑛 = [𝑥1. 𝑥2 … 𝑥𝑛 ] 1/n G.M = Antilog (∑ 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑔𝑥𝑖 /∑ 𝑓)
G.M = Antilog (∑ 𝑙𝑜𝑔𝑥𝑖 /n )
 Q. 5. Find G. M of 45, 32, 37, 46, 39, 36, 41, 48, 36
Sol.
Marks Log xi
(xi )
45 1.65321
32 1.50515
37 1.56820 G. M = Antilog (∑ 𝑙𝑜𝑔𝑥𝑖 /n )
46 1.66276
39 1.59106 = Antilog (14.38700/9) = 39.68
36 1.55630
41 1.61278
48 1.68124
36 1.55630
Total 14.38700

Q. 6. Find G. M

Weight 65-84 85-104 105-124 125-144 145-164 165-184 185-204

f 9 10 17 10 5 4 5
Sol:
Weight f xi log xi f log xi
(Grams) (Mid point)
65-84 9 74.5 1.8722 16.8498
85-104 10 94.5 1.9754 19.7540 G.M = Antilog (∑ 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑔𝑥𝑖 /∑ 𝑓)
105-124 17 114.5 2.0589 35.0013
125-144 10 134.5 2.1287 21.2870 = Antilog (124.2483/60)
145-164 5 154.5 2.1889 10.9445
165-184 4 174.5 2.2418 8.9672 = 117.7 grams
185-204 5 194.5 2.2889 11.4445
Totals 60 124.2483

7 Harmonic Mean: It is the reciprocal of arithmetic mean of the reciprocals of the non-zero
𝑛 ∑𝑓
values. H.M (for ungrouped data) = H.M = 1 H.M (for grouped data) = H.M = 𝑓
∑( ) ∑( )
𝑥 𝑥

Q. 7. Find average speed if speed is 15 km/hr for first 30 km, 20 km/hr for second 30 km
and 25 km/hr for third 30 km.

Sol: If distance remains same, then H. M is suitable for the average of speed.
 Speed (xi ) 1/xi 𝑛
H. M = 1
15 0.06667 ∑( )
𝑥
20 0.5000
25 0.04000 = 3/ 0.15667 = 19.15 km/hr.
Total 0.15667

Q. 8. Find H. M

Weight 65-84 85-104 105-124 125-144 145-164 165-184 185-204

f 9 10 17 10 5 4 5
Sol:
Weight f xi f / xi
(Grams) (Mid point)
65-84 9 74.5 0.12081
85-104 10 94.5 0.10582 ∑𝑓
G.M = H.M = 𝑓
105-124 17 114.5 0.14847 ∑( )
𝑥
125-144 10 134.5 0.07435
145-164 5 154.5 0.03236 = 60/ 0.53044
165-184 4 174.5 0.02292
185-204 5 194.5 0.02571 = 113.11 grams
Totals 60 0.53044

Desirable qualities of a good average.

1. It should be well defined. (A.M, G.M, H.M)
2. It should depend upon all the values. (A.M, G.M, H.M)
3. It should be capable for further manipulation. (A.M, G.M, H.M)
4. It should be simple to understand and easy to calculate. (A.M)
5. It should be less affected by the extreme values. (Median, Mode)
6. If should be stable in repeated experiments. (A.M, G.M)

• A.M is suitable when (i) there is no extreme (large or small) value in the data, (ii)
average of rates (x/y) is required where y is fixed but x varies.
• G.M is suitable when average of rates or ratios is required.
• H.M is suitable when average of rates (x/y) is required where x is fixed but y varies.

A.M, G.M, and H.M are mathematical averages. Median and mode are averages of the
positions.
H.M is highly affected by extremely small values. (Disadvantage)
Find G.M of 5, 8, 9, 0, 8. (G.M vanishes if any value is zero) (Disadvantage)
Find H.M of 5, 8, 9, 0, 8. (H.M does not exist if any value is zero) (Disadvantage)
Find G.M of 5, 8, 9, -5, 8. (G.M does not exist if any value is negative) (Disadvantage)
Q. 1. Find median, Q1, Q3 from the following data.
12, 6, 15, 9, 4, 8, 7, 19, 11, 25, 22
Sol:
Arranging the data

No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Values: 4 6 7 8 9 11 12 15 19 22 25
𝑛+1
Med = th value in an array
2
11+1
= 2 th = 6th value in an array
= 11
𝑛+1
Q1 = th value in an array
4
11+1
=( )th = 3rd value in an array
4
=7
𝑛+1
Q3 = 3( )th value in an array
4
11+1
= 3( )th = 9th value in an array
4
= 19

Q. 2. Find median, Q1 and Q3 from the following data.

12, 15, 9, 4, 7, 19, 25, 22, 30, 28
Sol:
Arranging the data

No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Values: 4 7 9 12 15 19 22 25 28 30
𝑛+1
Med = th value in an array
2
10+1
= 2 th = 5.5th value in an array
= 5th value + 0.5(6th – 5th value)
= 15 + 0.5(19-15) = 15+2 = 17
𝑛+1
Q1 = th value in an array
4
10+1
= ( 4 )th = 2.75th value in an array
= 2nd value + 0.75(3rd – 2nd value)
= 7 + 0.75(9-2) = 7+1.5 = 8.5
 𝑛+1
Q3 = 3( )th value in an array
4
10+1
= 3( 4 )th = 8.25th value in an array
= 8th value + 0.25(9th – 8th)
= 25 + 0.25(28-25) = 25+0.75 = 25.75

Q. 3. Find median, Q1, Q3, D7, P65 and mode from the following data which shows the
number of heads when five coins were tossed 165 times.
No. of heads 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
Frequency 15 20 30 40 30 20 10

Sol: It is grouped data without classes. Here x (number of heads) is discrete, therefore, we
solve it as:

x f Cf 𝑛+1 165+1
Med = 2 th value in an array = ( 2 )th value
0 15 15
= 84th value (it lies in 105 cf value) = 3
1 20 35 𝑛+1 165+1
2 30 65 Q1 = 4 th value in an array = ( 4 )th value
3 40 105 = 42th value (it lies in 65 cf value) = 2
𝑛+1 165+1
4 30 135 Q3 = 3( 4 )th value in an array = 3( 4 )th value
5 20 155 = 126th value (it lies in 135 cf value) = 4
6 10 165
𝑛+1 165+1
D7 = 7( 10 )th value in an array = 7( 10 )th value
= 116.2th value (it lies in 135 cf value) = 4
𝑛+1 165+1
P65 = 65( 100 )th value in an array = 65( 100 )th value
= 107.9th value (it lies in 135 cf value) = 4
Mode = most frequent value (x with maximum frequency) = 3

Q. 4. Find median, Q1, Q3, D8, P45 and mode from the following data

Marks 30-39 40-49 50-59 60-69 70-79 80-89 90-99

f 8 87 190 304 211 85 20

𝑛
Marks f Cf C-B Med = Marks obtained by 2 th student.
30-39 8 8 29.5-39.5 905
= Marks obtained by 2 th = 452.5 th
40-49 87 95 39.5-49.5
50-59 190 285 49.5-59.5 student which lies in class (59.5-69.5)
ℎ 𝑛
60-69 304 589 59.5-69.5 Med = l + 𝑓 (2 - c)
70-79 211 800 69.5-79.5 10
= 59.5+ 304 (452.5- 285) = 65 marks
80-89 85 885 79.5-89.5
90-99 20 905 89.5-99.5
 𝑛 905
Q1 = Marks obtained by 4 th student= Marks obtained by th = 226.25th
4
student which lies in class (49.5-59.5)
ℎ 𝑛 10
Q1 = l + 𝑓 (4 - c) = 49.5 + 190 (226.25- 95) = 56 marks

3𝑛 3(905)
Q3 = Marks obtained by 4 th student = Marks obtained by th = 678.75th
4
student which lies in class (69.5-79.5)
ℎ 3𝑛 10
Q3 = l + 𝑓 ( 4 - c) = 69.5 + 211 (678.75- 589) = 74 marks

8𝑛 8(905)
D8 = Marks obtained by 10 th student = Marks obtained by th = 724th
10
student which lies in class (69.5-79.5)
ℎ 8𝑛 10
D8 = l + 𝑓 (10 - c) = 69.5 + 211 (724- 589) = 76 marks

45𝑛 45(905)
P45 = Marks obtained by 100 th student = Marks obtained by th = 407.25th
100
student which lies in class (59.5-69.5)
ℎ 45𝑛 10
P45 = l + 𝑓 (100 - c) = 59.5 + 211 (407.25-285) = 65.93 marks

For mode, select fm = maximum frequency which is 304. Hence model class is (59.5-69.5)
f1 is its preceding value which is 190. f2 is next to fm which is 211.
𝑓𝑚−𝑓1
Mode = l + (𝑓 ×ℎ
𝑚−𝑓1 )+(𝑓𝑚 −𝑓2 )

304−190
= 59.5 + (304−190)+(304−211) × 10

14(10)
= 59.5 + 14+93 = 59.5 + 1.31 = 60.81 marks

Q. 6. Find Mode of the following data.

(i) 25, 15, 18, 30, 20, 20, 12, 9, 16, 15 (ii) 12, 23, 25, 15, 20, 34, 21, 18
(iii) 15, 23, 25, 15, 20, 34, 21, 18, 15

Sol: (i) 15, 20 (Both are most frequent as both appear two times)
(ii) No mode (No value is being repeated)
(iii) 15 (most frequent which appears three times)
18 Median is suitable when (i) middle most value is required, (ii) distribution is skewed, (iii) data
is qualitative.
Measures of Dispersion, Skewness and Kurtosis
Dispersion: The extent to which the values are spread about their averages. There are two
types of dispersion. Absolute Dispersion and Relative Dispersion.

Absolute Dispersion: It is the actual variation and is expressed in the same unit of
measurement as of variable.

Relative Dispersion: It is expressed in terms of ratio, percentage or coefficient. It is free from

unit of measurement.

Measures of Dispersion: The methods which we use to measure the dispersion are called
measures of dispersion.

Absolute Measures of Dispersion: Range, Semi Inter quartile Range (Quartile Deviation),
Mean Deviation, Standard Deviation.

Relative Measures of Dispersion: Coefficient of Range, Coefficient of Quartile Deviation,

Coefficient of Dispersion (Mean Deviation), Coefficient of Variation.

Range: It is the difference between the largest and the smallest value of the data.
Range = xm – x0.
𝑥 −𝑥
Coefficient of Range = 𝑥𝑚+𝑥0
𝑚 0

Q. 1. Find Range and coefficient of Range from the following data.

12, 6, 15, 9, 4, 8, 7, 19, 11, 25, 22
Sol:
Range = xm – x0 = 25-4 = 21.
𝑥 −𝑥 25−21
Coefficient of Range = 𝑥𝑚+𝑥0 = 25+21 = 4/46 = 0.087.
𝑚 0

Q. 2. Find Range and coefficient of Range from the following data which shows the
number of heads when five coins were tossed 165 times.
No. of heads 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
Frequency 15 20 30 40 30 20 10
Sol.
Range = xm – x0 = 6-0 = 6.
𝑥 −𝑥 6−0
Coefficient of Range = 𝑥𝑚+𝑥0 = 6+0 = 6/6 = 1.
𝑚 0
Q. 3. Find Range and coefficient of Range.

Marks 30-39 40-49 50-59 60-69 70-79 80-89 90-99

f 8 87 190 304 211 85 20

Sol.

Marks f x C-B
30-39 8 34.5 29.5-39.5
40-49 87 44.5 39.5-49.5
50-59 190 54.5 49.5-59.5
60-69 304 64.5 59.5-69.5
70-79 211 74.5 69.5-79.5
80-89 85 84.5 79.5-89.5
90-99 20 94.5 89.5-99.5

a) Using x as midpoint.

Range = xm – x0 = 94.5-34.5 = 60.

𝑥 −𝑥 94.5−34.5
Coefficient of Range = 𝑥𝑚+𝑥0 = 94.5+34.5 = 60/129 = 0.465.
𝑚 0

b) Using x as class boundaries.

Range = xm – x0 = 99.5 - 29.5 = 70.

𝑥 −𝑥 99.5−29.5
Coefficient of Range = 𝑥𝑚+𝑥0 = 99.5+29.5 = 70/129 = 0.543.
𝑚 0

Interquartile Range: It is the difference between the upper and lower quartiles.

Semi Interquartile Range (Quartile Deviation): It is half of the difference between the
upper and lower quartiles.
𝑄3 −𝑄1
Quartile Deviation = Q.D=
2
𝑄 −𝑄
Coefficient of Q.D = 𝑄3+𝑄1
3 1
 Mean Deviation: It is the arithmetic mean of the absolute deviations taken from mean, median
or mode.
Mean Deviation for ungrouped data Mean Deviation for grouped data
∑|𝑥−𝑥̅ | ∑ 𝑓|𝑥−𝑥̅ |
M. D (About Mean) = M. D (About Mean) = ∑𝑓
𝑛
∑|𝑥−𝑥̃| ∑ 𝑓|𝑥−𝑥̃|
M. D (About Mean) = M. D (About Mean) =
𝑛 ∑𝑓
∑|𝑥−𝑥̂| ∑ 𝑓|𝑥−𝑥̂|
M. D (About Mode) = M. D (About Mode) =
𝑛 ∑𝑓

Q. 1. The marks obtained by 9 students are given below. Find mean deviation about (i) mean,
(ii) median, and (iii) mode.

450, 320, 370, 460, 390, 360, 410, 480, 360

Sol:

xi (Marks) xi – 𝑥̅ = xi - 400 |𝑥 − 𝑥̅ |
450 450-400 = 50 50
320 320-400 = -80 80
370 -30 30
460 60 60
390 -10 10
360 -40 40
410 10 10
480 80 80
360 -40 40
3600 = ∑ 𝑥𝑖 400

𝑥̅ = ∑ 𝑥𝑖 /n = 3600/9 = 400.
∑|𝑥−𝑥̅ |
M. D (About Mean) = = 400/ 9 = 44.444
𝑛

Q. 2. Find Mean deviation.

Weight 65-84 85-104 105-124 125-144 145-164 165-184 185-204

f 9 10 17 10 5 4 5
Sol:

Weight f xi f xi xi – 𝑥̅ |𝑥 − 𝑥̅ | 𝑓|𝑥 − 𝑥̅ |
(Grams) (Mid point)
65-84 9 74.5 670.5 -48 48 432
85-104 10 94.5 945.0 -28 28 280
105-124 17 114.5 1946.5 -8 8 136
125-144 10 134.5 1345.0 12 12 120
145-164 5 154.5 772.5 32 32 160
165-184 4 174.5 698.0 52 52 208
185-204 5 194.5 972.5 72 72 360
Totals 60 7350 1698

𝑥̅ (Direct method) = ∑ 𝑓𝑥𝑖 /∑ 𝑓 = 7350.0/ 60 = 122.5 grams.

∑ 𝑓|𝑥−𝑥̅ |
M. D (About Mean) = ∑𝑓
= 1696/ 60 = 28.27 grams.

Standard Deviation: It is the positive square root of the arithmetic mean of squared
deviations taken from mean.
Standard deviation for ungrouped data, Standard deviation for grouped data,
∑(𝑥−𝑥̅ )2 𝑓 ∑(𝑥−𝑥̅ )2
S= √ S= √ ∑𝑓
𝑛
1.

Variance: It is the arithmetic mean of squared deviations taken from mean.

For ungrouped data, For grouped data,
∑(𝑥−𝑥̅ )2 ∑ 𝑓(𝑥−𝑥̅ )2
Variance = S2 = Variance = S2 = ∑𝑓
𝑛

Coefficient of Variation: It is ratio of the standard deviation to the arithmetic mean expressed
in percentage. It is used to measure the variation among two or more groups.
𝑆.𝐷
Coefficient of variation (C.V) = × 100 %.
𝑀𝑒𝑎𝑛

Q3. Calculate standard deviation, variance and coefficient of variation for the following data.
45, 32, 37, 46, 39, 36, 41, 48, 36
xi (Marks) xi – 𝑥̅ = xi - 40 (xi – 𝑥̅ )2
45 45-40 = 5 25
 32 32-40 = -8 64
37 -3 9
46 6 36
39 -1 1
36 -4 16
41 1 1
48 8 64
36 -4 16
360 = ∑ 𝑥𝑖 0 232

𝑥̅ = ∑ 𝑥𝑖 /n = 360/9 = 40 marks

∑(𝑥−𝑥̅ )2 232
S= √ = √ = 5.077
𝑛 9

Variance = S2 = ∑(𝑥i – 𝑥̅ )2 /n = 232/9 = 25.78 (marks)2

𝑆.𝐷 5.077
Coefficient of variation (C.V) = 𝑀𝑒𝑎𝑛 × 100 % = × 100 % = 12.69 %
40