A researcher is measuring problem-solving times for a sample of n = 20 children. However, one of the children fails to solve the problem so the researcher has an undetermined score. What is the best measure of central tendency for these data?
Median.
Measures of central tendency are mean, median, and mode.
central tendency can not be determined
In this case, since one of the children has an undetermined score, the best measure of central tendency would be the median. The median is not affected by outliers or undetermined values, which makes it a robust measure for representing the central value in the data set.
The best measure of central tendency for these data can vary depending on the characteristics of the data and the research question. However, considering that there is one undetermined score, using the median as a measure of central tendency would be a suitable choice.
To calculate the median, you need to arrange the problem-solving times from the lowest to the highest. Since there is an undetermined score, arrange the scores in ascending order and omit the undetermined score in this process. Once arranged, the middle value of the remaining scores would represent the median.
Here's a step-by-step guide:
1. Arrange the problem-solving times in ascending order.
2. Exclude the undetermined score from the arrangement.
3. If the number of remaining scores (n) is odd, the median is the middle value. For example, if n = 19, then the 10th score would be the median.
4. If the number of remaining scores (n) is even, take the average of the two middle values. For example, if n = 18, then the average of the 9th and 10th scores would be the median.
By using the median, you can find a central tendency measure that is not affected by the presence of the undetermined score, providing a robust representation of the problem-solving times for the sample of children.