Mean deviation

Mean deviation

Mean deviation is an absolute measure of dispersion which is assessed on the

basis of the average of the distribution.
It is the sum of absolute deviation from an average divided by the number of
items. It is also known as average deviation.
Coefficient of mean deviation
As we know that mean deviation is an absolute measure of dispersion, Thus, in order to transform it
into a relative measure, it is divided by the average from which it has been calculated. It is then
known as the coefficient of mean deviation.
Thus,
Coefficient of mean deviation from mean =
And
Coefficient of mean deviation from median =
Note:- Mode is not a stable average so, it is not used to calculate mean deviation and coefficient of
mean deviation.
Calculation of mean deviation and its
Coefficient
The calculation of mean deviation and its Coefficient in different series is discussed below
In individual series Calculation of mean deviation of the value that is
Calculate the difference between each value and the arithmetic mean. All differences are considered to be
positive. These differences are called deviations and denoted as |D|. We find sum of all deviation, i.e.
Now, mean deviation is calculated with the help of the following formula
Mean deviation from mean =
Where, = Sum of absolute deviations
n = Number of values
After that, to calculate coefficient of mean deviation, use the following formula
Coefficient of MD =
Where, = Mean deviation from Mean
Arithmetic Mean
Note:- If mean deviation is to be calculated from median, then deviations are to be taken from median.
In discrete series First of all, calculate the Arithmetic mean. Find absolute
deviation |D| from the mean, i.e. ignore the plus or minus signs of deviations. Then,
multiply absolute deviation |D| of each observation with the corresponding
frequency (f) of the variable (f|D|)and find some of these product.
Mean deviation is calculated with the help of following given formula
Mean deviation from Arithmetic mean =
Where,
= Sum of the product of absolute deviations with frequency
= Sum of frequencies
Now, coefficient of mean deviation is calculated with the help of following formula
Coefficient of mean deviation
In continuous series Find the mid-value of the groups of the given frequency
distribution.
Find the actual mean of the distribution and find the absolute deviation by
subtracting the mean from the given values. Denote it as |D|.
Multiply frequency with the deviation and then find the sum of their products,
the formulae as discussed in the discrete series are to be used.