Measures of Central Tendency

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Measures of Central Tendency

A measure of central tendency is a single number used to represent the center of a group of data. Different variables may possess different numerical characteristics. So different measures of central tendency may better summarize the variable. The basic measures are the:

mean median mode

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Measures of Central Tendency

The choice of which measure to use depends on: the shape of the distribution (whether normal or skewed), and the variables level of measurement (data are nominal, ordinal or interval).

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Appropriate Measures of Central Tendency

Nominal variables: Ordinal variables:

Mode Median

Interval level variables: Mean - If the distribution is normal (median is better with skewed distribution)

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Mean:

Mean are of three types viz.

Arithmetic mean (AM), Geometric Mean (GM) and Harmonic Mean (HM).

Of these, AM is the one which is most widely used in Public Health and Medicine

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Mean
Arithmetic Mean (AM) Most Common Measure Sum of all values/ No. of values 1 X Symbolically, X N It may be noted that unless otherwise specified, `mean indicates Arithmetic Mean. Acts as Balance Point Affected by Extreme Values (Outliers) Formula (Sample Mean)
N i 1 i

Xi
i 1

X1 X 2 X n n

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Mean Example

Raw Data: 10.3 4.9

8.9 11.7 6.3

7.7

Xi
i 1

n
10.3 4.9 8.9 11.7 6.3 7.7 6
Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

8.30

Measure of central tendency

The weighted mean x 6 Group A: n=12 Group B: n=8 x 7 72 56 Weighted mean = X 1 X 2 = = 6.4
n1 n2

12 8

Seriously sensitive to extreme scores.

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Sensitivity to Outliers

Incomes in Private Chamber, Dhaka (population =5)

Person Dabir Sabir Kabir Khabir Income (BTK) 5,467,220 24,780 24,100 19,500

Jabir
Mean

19,400
1,111,000
Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Which Measure is Better?

In the above example, the mean is BTK 1,111,000, the median is BTK 24,100. Which measure is better?

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Median

Measure of Central Tendency Middle Value In Ordered Sequence If Odd n, Middle Value of Sequence If Even n, Average of 2 Middle Values Not Affected by Extreme Values

Position of Median in Sequence

Positioning point

n 1 2

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Median Example Odd-Sized Sample

Raw Data: 24.1 22.6 21.5 23.7 22.6

21.5 1 22.6 2 22.6 3 23.7 4 24.1 5

Ordered: Position:

Positioning Point Median = 22.6

n +1
2

5 +1 2

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Median Example Even-Sized Sample

Raw Data: 10.3 4.9 4.9 1 6.3 2

8.9 11.7 6.3 7.7 3

7.7

Ordered: Position:

8.9 10.3 11.7 4 5 6

Positioning point
Median 7.7 + 8.9 2

n +1 2

6 +1 2

3.5

= 8.3

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

The Mode

The mode is the: most frequently occurring value in a group or raw scores value of the group that contains the most cases in grouped data Measure of Central Tendency Value That Occurs Most Often Not Affected by Extreme Values May Be Used for Numerical & Categorical Data
Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

The ModeExample
Race White Frequency Distribution of Race in the 2000 General Social Survey f 2,244

Black
Other Total

404
170 2,817

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Measure of central tendency

Central tendency and the shape of the distribution

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Skewness and Sample Distributions

Not all curves are normal, even if still bell-shaped

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

The Theoretical Normal Curve

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Properties of the Normal Curve:

Also called Bell Curve or Gaussian Curve Symmetrical Unimodal The mean of a distribution is the midpoint of the curve The tails of the curve are infinite Its Mean, Median and Mode will coincide The area under the curve is measured in standard deviations from the mean
Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

Properties (cont.)

Has a mean = 0 and standard deviation = 1. General relationships: 1 s = about 68.26% 2 s = about 95.44% 3 s = about 99.72%

68.26%

95.44% 99.72%

-5

-4

-3

-2

-1

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

68-95-99.7 Rule

68% of the data

95% of the data 99.7% of the data

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

How good is rule for real data?

Check some example data: N=120 The mean of the weight of the women = 127.8 The standard deviation (SD) = 15.5

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

68% of 120 = .68x120 = ~ 82 runners In fact, 79 runners fall within 1-SD (15.5 lbs) of the mean.

112.3
25

127.8

143.3

20 P e r c e n t

15

10

0 80 90 100 110 120 POUNDS 130 140 150 160

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

95% of 120 = .95 x 120 = ~ 114 runners

In fact, 115 runners fall within 2-SDs of the mean.

96.8
25

127.8

158.8

20 P e r c e n t

15

10

0 80 90 100 110 120 POUNDS 130 140 150 160

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU

99.7% of 120 = .997 x 120 = 119.6 runners

In fact, all 120 runners fall within 3-SDs of the mean.

81.3
25

127.8

174.3

20 P e r c e n t

15

10

0 80 90 100 110 120 POUNDS 130 140 150 160

Dr. Md. Atiqul Haque, Assistant professor, Dept. PHI, BSMMU