How to Calculate the Mean Deviation of a Data Set: Step-by-Step Example

Learn how to calculate the mean deviation of a set of numbers with this clear, step-by-step example using 38, 70, 48, and more.

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The mean deviation of the numbers 38, 70, 48, 40, 42, 55, 63, 46, 54, 44 is calculated as follows: Find the mean (5*x): (38 + 70 + 48 + 40 + 42 + 55 + 63 + 46 + 54 + 44) / 10 = 50. Subtract the mean from each number, take the absolute values, sum them up, and then divide by the number of values: (12 + 20 + 2 + 10 + 8 + 5 + 13 + 4 + 4 + 6) / 10 = 8.4.

FAQs & Answers

  1. What is mean deviation in statistics? Mean deviation is the average of the absolute differences between each data value and the mean of the data set, indicating the variability of the data.
  2. How do you calculate mean deviation? Calculate the mean of the data set, find the absolute difference of each value from the mean, sum these differences, and divide by the number of values.
  3. What is the difference between mean deviation and standard deviation? Mean deviation uses absolute differences from the mean, while standard deviation uses squared differences, making it more sensitive to outliers.