Measure of central tendency

or
Averages
or
Measure of Location
Measure of central tendency are statistical
constants which enable us to understand in a
single effort the significance of the whole data
set.

Main Objective:
i) Summarise the data
ii) Comparison of date
Let us take 3 possible outcomes of the class test
marks
Student Test marks A Test marks B Test marks C
You 3 3 3
w 3 4 2
x 3 4 2
y 3 4 2
z 3 5 1

Which of three marks data set would make you

happiest?
The following are the five important
measures of central tendency

1. Arithmetic mean
2. Median
3. Mode
4. Geometric Mean
5. Harmonic Mean
 Characteristics of an ideal measure of central
tendency
I. It should be rigidly defined.
II. It should be easy to calculate.
III.It should be based on all the observations.
IV. It should be suitable for further mathematical
treatments.
V. It should be affected as little as possible by
fluctuations of sampling.
VI. It should not be affected much by extreme
values.
 Arithmetic Mean(A.M.)
Arithmetic mean of a set of observation is their sum
divided by the number of observations.
Methods for calculation of A.M.
We can have two type of data representation and for each
of them we have two method of calculation of A.M.
For ungrouped data Set
i. Direct method
ii. Short-cut method
For grouped data set
iii. Direct method
iv. Short-cut method
Calculation of A.M. for ungrouped data set

•i.   Direct method:

The A.M. of n observations, is given by

Or
The weight of five Students are 50, 52, 54,
48, 46 find out the average
•  

= 50 +52+54+48+46=250
N=5
=50
•Ex:  the monthly income of 5 employees working
in a firm 4000 , 4400, 4500, 4040, 4060
Find the average.

= 4000 +4400+4500+4040+4060=21000
N=5

=4200
ii. Short-cut method
•  
Where, d=X-A
A= arbitrary point(or assumed mean)
 The weight of five Students are 50, 52, 54,
48, 46 find out the average
Weight of the student d=X-50

50 0
52 2
54 4
48 -2
46 -4
=0

 
•Ex:  the monthly income of 5 employees working
in a firm 4000 , 4400, 4500, 4040, 4060
Find the average.
Monthly income of X-4500
employees
4000
4000 -500
-500
4400 -100
4400 -100
4500 0
4500 0
4040 -460
4040 -460
4060 -440
4060 -440
=-1500
Example: calculate Mean
Class attendance No of students present
Day 1 40
Day 2 44
Day 3 52
Day 4 37
Day 5 48
 Calculation of A.M. for Grouped data set
•i.   Direct method:

X= mid-point of various classes.

f= the frequency of each class
total frequency
Calculate the A.M. for the given data set
Weight of the student frequency

50 8
52 2
54 4
48 6
46 10
 Solution
. Weight of the student(X) Frequency(f) f*X

50 8 50*8=400
52 2 52*2=104
54 4 54*4=216
48 6 48*6=288
46 10 46*10=460
30 1468

 
•Ex:  Find the A.M.
Monthly income of Frequency fX fX
employees
4000 4 4000*4 16000
4400 6 4400*6 26400
4500 3 4500*3 13500
4040 7 4040*7 28280
4060 5 4060*5 20300

25 104480
 Calculate the A.M. for the given data
set
.
Weight of the student frequency

40-50 8

50-60 2
60-70 4
70-80 6
 Solution
Weight of the Mid point(x) Frequency(f) f*X
student

40-50 45 8 45*8=360
50-60 55 2 55*2=110
60-70 65 4 65*4=260
70-80 75 6 75*6=450
total 20 1180

  ∑ 𝑓𝑥 1180
´
𝑋= = =59
∑ 𝑓 20
 Merits of Arithmetic Mean

1. It is rigidly defined.
2. It is easy to understand and easy to calculate
3. It is based upon all the observations.
4. It is suitable for further mathematical
treatment.
5. It is affected least by fluctuations of sampling.
 Demerits of Arithmetic Mean
1. It can not be determine by inspection nor it can
be located graphically
2. Arithmetic mean can not be used if we are
dealing with qualitative characteristics.
3. It can not be obtained if a single observation is
missing.
4. It is affected very much by extreme values.
5. It can not be calculated if extreme class interval
is open.