Measures of Central Tendency

Paper Summary:

This paper first explains that measures of central tendency are those descriptive statistics that describe the point or points about which a distribution centers. The paper then provides a description of the three measures which are used to describe central tendency and identify the advantages and disadvantages of each, as well as describing a situation in which each of these measures might be used. A summary of the research and salient findings are presented in the conclusion.

Table of Contents:
Review and Discussion
Introduction
Mean
Median
Mode
Summary and Recapitulation
Table:Summary of the Three Measures of Central Tendency
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"This measure of central tendency is sometimes referred to as the arithmetic mean or "average". According to Cai, Lo and Watanabe (2002), seven properties of the arithmetic average are as follows: (a) the average is located between the extreme values; (b) the sum of the deviations from the average is zero; (c) the average is influenced by values other than the average; (d) the average does not necessarily equal one of the values that was summed; (e) the average can be a fraction that has no counterpart in physical reality; (f) a value of zero."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Cai, J., Lo, J. J., & Watanabe, T. (2002). Intended treatments of arithmetic average in U.S. and Asian school mathematics textbooks. School Science and Mathematics, 102(8), 391.
• Leavy, A. M. (2004). Indexing distributions of data: Preservice teachers' notions of representativeness. School Science and Mathematics, 104(3), 119.
• Lomax, R. G. (2001). An introduction to statistical concepts for education and behavioral sciences. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
• Neuman, W. L. (2003). Social research methods: Qualitative and quantitative approaches, 5th ed. New York: Allyn & Bacon.
• Zevenbergen, R., Dole, S., & Wright, R. J. (2004). Teaching mathematics in primary schools. Crows Nest, N.S.W.: Allen & Unwin.

More papers on Measures of Central Tendency:

• Analytical Essay # 126997 : "Mathematical Measures"
• Research Paper # 102310 : "Research Analysis: SENTRI Program"
• Research Paper # 92969 : "Quality Control"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: