CHAPTER IV

MEASURES OF CENTRAL TENDENCY

4.1 MEANING OF MEASURES OF CENTRAL TENDENCY:

One of the most important aspects of describing a distribution is the central value around which
the observations are distributed. Any mathematical measure which is intended to represent the
central value of a set of observations is known as measure of central tendency. (or) The single
value, which represents the group of values is termed as a ‘measure of central tendency’ or a
measure of location or an average.

Different measures of central values: Arithmetic mean, Geometric mean, Harmonic mean,
Median, Mode, Quartiles, Octiles, Deciles and Percentiles.

Major classifications of averages are: (I) Mathematical average - arithmetic mean, geometric
mean, Harmonic mean. (II) Positional averages - median, mode, quartiles, quintiles, octiles,
deciles, percentiles. (III) Commercial average – moving average, progressive average,
composite average.

4.2 CHARACTRISTICS FOR IDEAL MEASURE OF CENTRAL TENDENCY:

The following are the characteristics for an ideal measure of central tendency:
(i) It should be rigidly defined.
(ii) It should be easy to understand and easy to calculate.
(iii) It should be based on all the observations.
(iv) It should be suitable for further mathematical treatment.
(v) It should be affected as little as possible by fluctuations of sampling.
(vi) It should not be affected much by extreme values.

4.3 Arithmetic mean or mean

Arithmetic mean or simply the mean of a variable is defined as the sum of the observations
divided by the number of observations. It is denoted by the symbol 𝑥̅ .

Ungrouped data:
Direct Method:
If the variable x assumes n values 𝑥1 , 𝑥2 , …, 𝑥𝑛 then the mean is given by
𝑛
𝑥1 + 𝑥2 + 𝑥3 + ⋯ + 𝑥𝑛 1
𝑥̅ = = ∑ 𝑥𝑖
𝑛 𝑛
𝑖=1
where ∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 = sum of the given observations
n = Number of observations

Short cut method: In some problems, where the number of variables is large or the values of
𝑥𝑖 or 𝑓𝑖 are larger, then the calculations become tedious. To overcome this difficulty, we use
short cut or deviation method in which an approximate mean, called assumed mean is taken.
This assumed mean is taken preferably near the middle, say A (arbitrary point), and the
deviation 𝑑𝑖 = 𝑥𝑖 − 𝐴 is calculated for each variable 𝑥𝑖 , Then the mean is given by the formula:
∑𝑑𝑖
Mean(𝑥̅ ) = 𝐴 +
𝑛

Example: Calculate the mean for 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10.

Solution:
By Direct method:
2 + 4 + 6 + 8 + 10 30
Mean = = =6
5 5
By Short-cut method:
Let A = 4
∴ 𝑑𝑖 = 𝑥𝑖 − 𝐴 = −2, 0, 2, 4, 6
∑𝑑𝑖 = 10
10
∴ 𝑥̅ = 4 + =6
5

Example:
(i) Find the mean of first n natural numbers.
(ii) Find the mean of the squares of the first n natural numbers and hence calculate the mean
of the squares of first ten natural numbers.
Solution:
(i) Mean of first n natural numbers
1+2+3+ ... +𝑛 𝑛(𝑛+1) (𝑛+1)
= = =
𝑛 2𝑛 2
(ii) Mean of the squares of the first n natural number
12 +22 +32 +⋯+𝑛2 𝑛(𝑛+1)(2𝑛+1) (𝑛+1)(2𝑛+1)
= = =
𝑛 6×𝑛 6
and hence the mean of the squares of the first ten natural numbers
(10+1)(20+1) 11×21
= = = 38.5
6 6
Grouped Data
Direct Method:
The mean for grouped data is obtained from the following formula:
If the observations 𝑥1 , 𝑥2 … 𝑥𝑛 have frequencies 𝑓1 , 𝑓2 , 𝑓3 , … , 𝑓𝑛 respectively, then the mean is
given by:
(𝑓1 𝑥1 + 𝑓2 𝑥2 + … + 𝑓𝑛 𝑥𝑛 ) ∑𝑓𝑖 𝑥𝑖 ∑𝑓𝑖 𝑥𝑖
Mean(𝑋̅) = = =
𝑓1 + 𝑓2 + ⋯ + 𝑓𝑛 ∑𝑓𝑖 𝑛

Where x = the mid-point of individual class

f = the frequency of individual class
n = the sum of the frequencies or total frequencies in a sample.

Short cut method: In some problems, where the number of variables is large or the values of
𝑥𝑖 or 𝑓𝑖 are larger, then the calculations become tedious. To overcome this difficulty, we use
short cut or deviation method in which an approximate mean, called assumed mean is taken.
This assumed mean is taken preferably near the middle, say A (arbitrary point), and the
deviation 𝑑𝑖 = 𝑥𝑖 − 𝐴 is calculated for each variable 𝑥𝑖 , Then the mean is given by the formula:
∑𝑓𝑖 𝑥𝑖
(i) Mean(𝑋̅) = 𝐴 + ∑𝑓𝑖

∑𝑓 𝑑
(ii) 𝑋̅ = 𝐴 + 𝑖 𝑖 × ℎ,
∑𝑓𝑖
(𝑥𝑖 −𝐴)
Where 𝑑𝑖 = ℎ

A = any value in x
n = total frequency
h = width of the class interval

Example: Given the following frequency distribution, calculate the arithmetic mean
Marks (x) 50 55 60 65 70 75
No of Students (f) 2 5 4 4 5 5

Solution:

Marks (x) 50 55 60 65 70 75 Total

No of Students (f) 2 5 4 4 5 5 25
f (x) 100 275 240 260 350 375 1600
 (𝑓1 𝑥1 + 𝑓2 𝑥2 + … + 𝑓𝑛 𝑥𝑛 ) ∑𝑓𝑖 𝑥𝑖
Mean(𝑋̅) = =
𝑓1 + 𝑓2 + ⋯ + 𝑓𝑛 ∑𝑓𝑖
1600
= = 64
25

Mean for a grouped frequency distribution

Example: Given the following frequency distribution, calculate the arithmetic mean

Marks (x) 50 55 60 65 70 75
No of Students (f) 2 5 4 4 5 5

Solution:

x f fx d = x-A fd
50 2 100 -10 -20
55 5 275 -5 -25
60 4 240 0 00
65 4 260 +5 20
70 5 350 +10 50
75 5 375 +15 75
Total 25 1600 100

By Direct method:
(𝑓1 𝑥1 + 𝑓2 𝑥2 + … + 𝑓𝑛 𝑥𝑛 ) ∑𝑓𝑖 𝑥𝑖
Mean(𝑥̅ ) = =
𝑓1 + 𝑓2 + ⋯ + 𝑓𝑛 ∑𝑓𝑖
1600
= = 64
25
By Short-cut method:
∑𝑓𝑖 𝑑𝑖
Mean(𝑋̅) = 𝐴 +
𝑁
100
= 60 + = 60 + 4 = 64
25

Mean for a grouped frequency distribution

Find the class mark or mid-value x, of each class, as

lower limit + upper limit

𝑥𝑖 = class marks = ( )
2
 ∑𝑓𝑖 𝑥𝑖 ∑𝑓𝑖 𝑑𝑖
Then 𝑥̅ = 𝑜𝑟 𝑋̅ = 𝐴 + , where 𝑑𝑖 = 𝑥𝑖 − 𝐴,
∑𝑓𝑖 ∑𝑓𝑖

Example: Following is the distribution of persons according to different income groups.

Calculate arithmetic mean.

Income Rs. (100) 0-10 10-20 20-30 30-40 40-50 50-60 60-70
Number of persons 6 8 10 12 7 4 3

Solution:

Number of (𝑥𝑖 − 𝐴)
Income C. I. Mid X 𝑑𝑖 = fd
Persons (f) ℎ

0-10 6 5 -3 -18
10-20 8 15 -2 -16
20-30 10 25 -1 -10
30-40 12 A =35 0 0
40-50 7 45 1 7
50-60 4 55 2 8
60-70 3 65 3 9
Total 50 -20

∑𝑓𝑖 𝑑𝑖 (𝑥𝑖 − 𝐴)
𝑋̅ = 𝐴 + × ℎ, 𝑑𝑖 =
∑𝑓𝑖 ℎ

−20
=𝐴+ × 10 = 35 − 4 = 31
50

4.4 Properties of Arithmetic Mean

The following are the properties of arithmetic mean.
(i) Algebraic sum of the deviations of a set of values from their arithmetic mean is zero, i.e.,
(a) in the case of ungrouped data, ∑𝑛𝑖=1(𝑥𝑖 − 𝑥̅ ) = 0
(b) in the case of grouped data, ∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑓𝑖 (𝑥𝑖 − 𝑥̅ ) = 0

(ii) The sum of the squares of the deviations of a set of values is minimum when taken about
mean.
(iii) If 𝑥̅ is the mean of n observations 𝑥1 , 𝑥2 , … , 𝑥𝑛 , then the mean of the observation 𝑥1 +
𝐴, 𝑥2 + 𝐴, … , 𝑥𝑛 + 𝐴 is 𝑥̅ + 𝐴 i.e., if each observation is increased by A, then the mean is
also increased by A.
(iv) If 𝑥̅ is the mean of n observations 𝑥1 , 𝑥2 , … , 𝑥𝑛 , then the mean of the observation
𝐴𝑥1 , 𝐴𝑥2 , … , 𝐴𝑥𝑛 is 𝐴𝑥̅ where A is any number greater than zero, i.e., if each observation
is multiplied by a non-zero number A, then the mean is also multiplied by A.

(v) If 𝑥̅ is the mean of n observations 𝑥1 , 𝑥2 , … , 𝑥𝑛 , then the mean of the observation

𝑥1 𝑥2 𝑥𝑛 𝑥̅
, ,…, is where A is any number greater than zero, i.e., if each observation is
A A A A

divided by a non-zero number A, then the new mean is also divided by A.

(vi) If 𝑥̅ is the mean of n observations 𝑥1 , 𝑥2 , … , 𝑥𝑛 , then the mean of the observation 𝑥1 −

𝐴, 𝑥2 − 𝐴, … , 𝑥𝑛 − 𝐴 is 𝑥̅ − 𝐴 where A is any number.

(vii) (Mean of the composite series). If 𝑥̅𝑖 , (i = 1, 2, ..., k) are the means of k-component series
of sizes 𝑛𝑖 , (i = 1, 2, ..., k) respectively, then the mean 𝑥̅ of the composite series obtained
on combining the component series is given by the formula:
𝑛1 𝑥̅1 +𝑛2 𝑥̅ 2 +⋯+ 𝑛𝑘 𝑥̅ 𝑘 ∑𝑘
𝑖=1 𝑛𝑖 𝑥̅ 𝑖
𝑥̅ = = ∑𝑘
𝑛1 +𝑛2 +⋯+ 𝑛𝑘 𝑖=1 𝑛𝑖

4.5 Merits and demerits of Arithmetic mean:

Merits:
1. It is rigidly defined.
2. It is easy to understand and easy to calculate.
3. It is based upon all the observations.
4. If the number of items is sufficiently large, it is more accurate and more reliable.
5. It is a calculated value and is not based on its position in the series.
6. It is possible to calculate even if some of the details of the data are lacking.
7. Of all averages, it is affected least by fluctuations of sampling.
8. It provides a good basis for comparison.

Demerits:

1. It cannot be obtained by inspection nor located through a frequency graph.

2. It cannot be in the study of qualitative phenomena not capable of numerical
measurement i.e., Intelligence, beauty, honesty etc.,
 3. It can ignore any single item only at the risk of losing its accuracy.
4. It is affected very much by extreme values.
5. It cannot be calculated for open-end classes.
6. It may lead to fallacious conclusions, if the details of the data from which it is computed
are not given.

4.6 WEIGHTED ARITHMETIC MEAN:

We calculate arithmetic mean or simply mean assuming that all the items in the distribution
have equal importance. But in reality, there are cases where the relative importance of different
items is not the same i.e., some items in the distribution are important than others. In such
situation, the more weights are to be assigned to important items and less to non-important
items. For example, wheat, rice, pulses etc., are more important than cigarettes, tea, coffee etc.
The weighted arithmetic mean can be defined as follows:
Definition: If 𝑥1 , 𝑥2 … 𝑥𝑛 are n values of a variable x and have frequencies 𝑤1 , 𝑤2 , 𝑤3 , … , 𝑤𝑛
denote their weights respectively, then the weighted arithmetic mean 𝑥̅𝑛 is defined as

𝑤1 𝑥1 + 𝑤2 𝑥2 + … + 𝑤𝑛 𝑥𝑛 ) ∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑤𝑖 𝑥𝑖
𝑥̅𝑤 = = 𝑛
𝑤1 + 𝑤2 + ⋯ + 𝑤𝑛 ∑𝑖=1 𝑤𝑖

Weighted mean gives the result equal to the simple mean if the weights assigned to each of
the variate values are equal. It results in higher value than the simple mean if smaller weights
are given to smaller items and larger weights to larger items. If the weights attached to larger
items are smaller and those attached to smaller items are larger, then the weighted mean results
in smaller value than the simple mean.

Example: Find the simple and weighted arithmetic mean of the first n natural numbers, the
weights being the corresponding numbers.
Solution. The first natural numbers are 1, 2, …, n.
We know that
𝑛(𝑛+1)
1 + 2 + 3 + ... + n =
2
𝑛(𝑛+1)(2𝑛+1)
12 + 22 + 32 + ⋯ + 𝑛2 = 6

∑𝑥 1 +2+3+ ...+ n (𝑛+1)

Simple A.M. is 𝑥̅ = = =
𝑛 𝑛 2
∑𝑛
𝑖=1 𝑤𝑖 𝑥𝑖 12 +22 + 32 +⋯ 𝑛2 (2𝑛+1)
Weighted A.M. is 𝑥̅𝑤 = = =
∑𝑛
𝑖=1 𝑤𝑖 1 +2+3+ ...+ n 3
4.7 Median:
Median of a distribution is the value of the variable which divides it into two equal parts. It is
the va1ue which exceeds and is exceeded by the same number of observations, i.e., it is the
value such that the number of observations above it is equal to the number of observations
below it. The median is thus a positional average.

Median of an ungrouped data:

In the case of ungrouped data, median value is determined by using the following rule:
(i) Arrange the observations (values of the variate) in ascending or descending order of
magnitude.
(ii) Determine the total number of observations, n (say)
(iii) If n is odd, then
𝑛+1 th
Median = value of ( ) observation in the arranged series.
2

(iv) If n is even, then

𝑛 th 𝑛 th
value of ( ) observation + ( +1) observation
2 2
Median =
2

When odd numbers of values are given: -

Example: Find median for the following data

25, 18, 27, 10, 8, 30, 42, 20, 53
Solution:
Arranging the data in the increasing order 8, 10, 18, 20, 25, 27, 30, 42, 53
Here, numbers of observations are odd (n = 9)
𝑛+1 𝑡ℎ 9+1 th
Hence, Median = ( ) item = ( ) item= (5)th item
2 2

The middle value is the 5th item i.e., 25 is the median value.

When even numbers of values are given: -

Example: Find median for the following data

5, 8, 12, 30, 18, 10, 2, 22
Solution:
Arranging the data in the increasing order 2, 5, 8, 10, 12, 18, 22, 30
10+12
Here median is the mean of the middle two items (i.e.) mean of (10, 12) i.e., ( 2
) = 11
Example: The following table represents the marks obtained by a batch of 10 students in
certain class tests in statistics and Accountancy.
Serial No 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Marks (Statistics) 53 55 52 32 30 60 47 46 35 28
Marks (Accountancy) 57 45 24 31 25 84 43 80 32 72

Solution: For such question, median is the most suitable measure of central tendency. The
marks in the two subjects are first arranged in increasing order as follows:

Serial No 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Marks in Statistics 28 30 32 35 46 47 52 53 55 60
Marks in Accountancy 24 25 31 32 43 45 57 72 80 84

46 + 47
Median value for Statistics = (Mean of 5th and 6th items) = = ( ) = 46.5
2
43 + 45
Median value for Accountancy = (Mean of 5th and 6th items) = ( ) = 44
2
Therefore, the level of knowledge in Statistics is higher than that in Accountancy.

Median of a grouped data:

In a grouped distribution, values are associated with frequencies. Grouping can be in the form
of a discrete frequency distribution or a continuous frequency distribution. Whatever may be
the type of distribution, cumulative frequencies have to be calculated to know the total number
of items.

Cumulative frequency (cf)

Cumulative frequency of each class is the sum of the frequency of the class and the frequencies
of the pervious classes, i.e., adding the frequencies successively, so that the last cumulative
frequency gives the total number of items.

Discrete Series:

𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩𝟏: Find cumulative frequencies.

N+1
𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟐: Find ( ).
2
N+1
𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟑: See in the cumulative frequencies the value just greater than ( ).
2
𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟒: Then the corresponding value of 𝑥 will be median.

Example: The following data are pertaining to the number of members in a family. Find
median size of the family.

Number of members x 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Frequency F 1 3 5 6 10 13 9 5 3 2 2 1

Solution:

X f C.f.
1 1 1
2 3 4
3 5 9
4 6 15
5 10 25
6 13 38
7 9 47
8 5 52
9 3 55
10 2 57
11 2 59
12 1 60
N= 60

N+1 60 + 1
Median = Size of ( ) th item = Size of ( ) th item = 30.5th item.
2 2

The cumulative frequency just greater than 30.5 is 38 and the value of x corresponding to 38 is
6. Hence the median size is 6 members per family.

Note:
It is an appropriate method because a fractional value given by mean does not indicate the
average number of members in a family.
Continuous Series
The steps given below are followed for the calculation of median in continuous series.

Step1: Find cumulative frequencies.

N
Step 2: Find ( ) .
2
N
Step3: See in the cumulative frequency the value first greater than ( ) Then the
2

corresponding class interval is called the Median Class. Then apply the formula for Median

𝑁
− 𝑐𝑓
𝑀𝑑 = 𝑙 + 2 ×ℎ
𝑓
Where

𝑙 = lower limit of the median class,

𝛴𝑓𝑖 = 𝑛 = number of Observations,
𝑓 = frequency of the median class,
ℎ = size of the median class (assuming class size to be equal),
𝑐𝑓 = cumulative frequency of the class preceding the median class
and 𝑁 = Total frequency.
Note:

If the class intervals are given in inclusive type convert them into exclusive type and call it as
true class interval and consider lower limit in this.

Example:
For the frequency distribution of weights of sorghum ear-heads given in table below. Calculate
the median.
Weights of ear No of ear heads (f) Less than Class Cumulative
heads (in g) frequency (m)
60-80 22 <80 22
80-100 38 <100 60
100-120 45 <120 105
120-140 35 <140 140
140-160 24 <160 164
Total 164
 𝑁
− 𝑐𝑓
𝑀𝑑 = 𝑙 + 2 ×ℎ
𝑓
N 164
( )=( ) = 82
2 2

It lies between 60 and 105. Corresponding to 60 the less than class is 100 and corresponding
to 105 the less than class is 120. Therefore, the medianal class is 100-120. Its lower limit is
100.
Here l =100, n=164, f = 45, c = 20, m =60
82 − 60
𝑀𝑑 = 100 + × 20 = 109.78 𝑔𝑚𝑠
45
4.8 MERITS AND DEMERITS OF MEDIAN:
Merits:
1. It is rigidly defined.
2. It is easily understood and is easy to calculate. In some cases, it can be located merely by
inspection.
3. It is not at all affected by extreme values because it is a positional average.
4. It can be calculated for distributions with open-end classes.

Demerits:
1. In case of even number of observations median cannot be determined exactly. We merely
estimate it by taking the mean of two middle terms.
2. It is not amenable to algebraic treatment.
3. As compared with mean, it is affected much by fluctuations of sampling.

4.9 USES OF MEDIAN:

(i) Median is the only average to be used while dealing with qualitative data which cannot be
measured quantitatively but still can be arranged in ascending or descending order of
magnitude, e.g., to find the average intelligence or average honesty among a group of people.
(ii) It is to be used for determining the typical value in problems concerning wages, distribution
of wealth, etc.

4.10 MODE:
The mode or modal value of a distribution is that value of the variable for which the frequency
is the maximum. It refers to that value in a distribution which occurs most frequently. It shows
the center of concentration of the frequency in around a given value. Therefore, where the
purpose is to know the point of the highest concentration it is preferred. It is, thus, a positional
measure.

Its importance is very great in marketing studies where a manager is interested in knowing
about the size, which has the highest concentration of items. For example, in placing an order
for shoes or ready-made garments the modal size helps because these sizes and other sizes
around in common demand.

Computation of the mode:

Mode of an ungrouped data:

For ungrouped data or a series of individual observations, mode is often found by mere
inspection. It is that value which occurs with maximum frequency.

Example: Find the mode value for the following data:

27, 28, 30, 33, 31, 35, 34, 33, 40, 41, 55, 46, 31, 33, 36, 33, 41, 33.

Solution: As seen from the above data, the item 33 occurred maximum number of times i.e., 5
times. Hence 33 is considered to be the modal value of the given data.

Example: 2, 7, 10, 15, 10, 17, 8, 10, 2

Mode = 𝑀0 = 10

In some cases, the mode may be absent while in some cases there may be more than one mode.

Example:
(1) 12, 10, 15, 24, 30 (no mode)
(2) 7, 10, 15, 12, 7, 14, 24, 10, 7, 20, 10
the modal values are 7 and 10 as both occur 3 times each.

Mode of a grouped data:

For Discrete distribution, see the highest frequency and corresponding value of X is mode.
Example: Find the mode for the following

Weight of sorghum in gms (x) No. of ear head(f)

50 4
65 6
75 16
80 8
95 7
100 4

Solution
The maximum frequency is 16. The corresponding x value is 75.
∴ mode = 75 gms.

Mode of a grouped data with class intervals:

See the highest frequency then the corresponding value of class interval is called the modal
class. Then apply the following formula:

𝑓 − 𝑓1
Mode (𝑀𝑜) = 𝑙 + ×ℎ
2𝑓 − 𝑓1 − 𝑓2

𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒

𝑙 = lower limit of the modal class,

𝑓 = frequency of the modal class,

𝑓1 = frequency of the class preceding the modal class

and 𝑓2 = frequency of the class succeeding the modal class.

Remarks:

If (2𝑓1 − 𝑓0 − 𝑓2 ) comes out to be zero, then mode is obtained by the following formula taking
absolute differences within vertical lines;

𝑓 − 𝑓1
Mode (𝑀0 ) = ×h
|𝑓 − 𝑓1 | + |𝑓 – 𝑓2 |

If mode lies in the first-class interval, then f is taken as zero.

The computation of mode poses no problem in distributions with open-end classes, unless the
modal value lies in the open-end class.

Example: Calculate mode for the following:

C.I. f

0-50 5

50-100 14

100-150 40

150-200 91

200-250 150

250-300 87

300-350 60

350-400 38

400 and above 15

Solution:
The highest frequency is 150 and corresponding class interval is 200 – 250, which is the modal
class.

Here, 𝑙 = 200; 𝑓 = 150; 𝑓1 = 91; 𝑓2 = 87 𝑎𝑛𝑑 ℎ = 50

𝑓 − 𝑓1
Mode(Mo) = 𝑙 + ×ℎ
2𝑓 − 𝑓1 − 𝑓2

150−91
= 200 + × 50
2×150−91−87

= 200 + 24.18

= 224.18
Empirical Relationship between Averages

In a symmetrical distribution the three simple averages mean = median = mode. For a
moderately asymmetrical distribution, the relationship between them are brought by Prof. Karl
Pearson as

𝑀𝑒𝑎𝑛 − 𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑒 = 3(𝑀𝑒𝑎𝑛 − 𝑀𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑛)

𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑒 = 3 𝑀𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑛 − 2 𝑀𝑒𝑎𝑛

Example: If the mean and median of a moderately asymmetrical series are 26.8 and 27.9
respectively, what would be its most probable mode?

Solution:
Using the empirical formula
𝑀𝑜𝑑𝑒 = 3 𝑚𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑛 − 2 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑛

= 3 × 27.9 − 2 × 26.8 = 30.1

4.11 MERITS AND DEMERITS OF MODE:

Merits:
1. Mode is readily comprehensible and easy to calculate.
2. Mode is not at all affected by extreme values.
3. Mode can be conveniently located even if the frequency distribution has class intervals of
unequal magnitude provided the modal class and the classes preceding and succeeding it
are of the same magnitude. Open-end classes also do not pose any problem in the location
of mode

Demerits:
1. Mode is ill defined. It is not always possible to find a clearly defined mode. In some cases,
we may come across distributions with two modes. Such distributions are called bi-modal.
If a distribution has more than two modes, it is said to be multimodal.
2. It is not based upon all the observations.
3. It is not capable of further mathematical treatment.
4. As compared with mean, mode is affected to a greater extent by fluctuations of sampling.
4.12 USES OF MODE:
Mode is the average to be used to find the ideal size. It is generally used in business forecasting
e.g., in the manufacture of ready-made garments. shoes, shirts etc.

3.5 Geometric Mean (G.M.):

The geometric mean of a series containing n observations is the 𝑛𝑡ℎ root of the product of the
values. If 𝑥1 , 𝑥2 , … , 𝑥𝑛 are observations then

G.M. = 𝑛√𝑥1 . 𝑥2 … . . 𝑥𝑛

1
= (𝑥1 . 𝑥2 … . 𝑥𝑛 )𝑛

1
⇒ 𝐿𝑜𝑔 𝐺. 𝑀. = (log 𝑥1 + log 𝑥2 + ⋯ + log 𝑥𝑛 )
𝑛

∑ log 𝑥𝑖
⇒ 𝐿𝑜𝑔 𝐺. 𝑀. =
𝑛

∑ log 𝑥𝑖
⇒ 𝐺. 𝑀. = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑙𝑜𝑔
𝑛

Example: Calculate the geometric mean (G.M.) of the following series of monthly income of
a batch of families 180, 250, 490, 1400, 1050.

Solution:
x Log x
180 2.2553
250 2.3979
490 2.6902
1400 3.1461
1050 3.0212
Total 13.5107

∑ log 𝑥𝑖 13.5107
𝐺. 𝑀. = 𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑙𝑜𝑔 = Antilog = Antilog 2.70 = 503.6
𝑛 5
Geometric mean in grouped data:
In the case of discrete frequency (grouped data) distribution, geometric mean ‘G.M.’ is defined
as
∑ fi log xi
G. M. = Antilog
𝑛

Example: Calculate the average income per head from the data given below. Use geometric
mean.

Class of people Number of families Monthly income per head (Rs.)

Landlords 2 5000
Cultivators 100 400
Landless – labours 50 200
Money – lenders 4 3750
Office Assistants 6 3000
Shop keepers 8 750
Carpenters 6 600
Weavers 10 300

Solution:

Class of people Annual income (Rs.) X Number of Log x f log x

families (f)
Landlords 5000 2 3.6990 7.398
Cultivators 400 100 2.6021 260.210
Landless – labours 200 50 2.3010 115.050
Money – lenders 3750 4 3.5740 14.296
Office Assistants 3000 6 3.4771 20.863
Shop keepers 750 8 2.8751 23.2008
Carpenters 600 6 2.7782 16.669
Weavers 300 10 2.4771 24.771
Total 186 482.257

∑ fi log xi
G. M. = Antilog
𝑛
482.257
= Antilog = Antilog(2.5928) = 391.50
186
Geometric mean in grouped data with class intervals:
In the case of grouped data with class intervals x is taken to be the value corresponding to the
mid points of the class intervals.

4.14 MERITS AND DEMERITS OF GEOMETRIC MEAN

Merits
1. It is rigidly defined.
2. It is based upon all the observations.
3. It is suitable for further mathematical treatment. If 𝑛1 and 𝑛2 are the sizes, 𝐺1 and 𝐺2 the
geometric means of two series respectively, the geometric mean G, of the combined series
1
is given by log 𝐺 = {𝑛1 log 𝐺1 + 𝑛2 log 𝐺2 }
𝑛1 +𝑛2

4. It is not affected much by fluctuations of sampling.

5. It gives comparatively more weight to small items.

Demerits.
1. Because of its abstract mathematical character, geometric mean is not easy to understand
and to calculate for a non-mathematics person.
2. If anyone of the observations is zero, geometric mean becomes zero and if anyone of the
observations is negative, geometric mean becomes imaginary regardless of the magnitude
of the other items.

4.15 USES OF GEOMETRIC MEAN:

1. To find the rate of population growth and the rate of interest.
2. In the construction of index numbers.

4.16 HARMONIC MEAN (H.M.):

Harmonic mean of a set of observations is defined as the reciprocal of the arithmetic average
of the reciprocal of the given values. If 𝑥1 , 𝑥2 , . . , 𝑥𝑛 are n observations,

𝑛
𝐻𝑀 =
∑𝑛𝑖=1(1/𝑥𝑖 )

For a frequency distribution

𝑛
𝐻𝑀 = 𝑛
1
∑ 𝑓𝑖 (𝑥 )
𝑖=1 𝑖
Example: From the given data calculate H. M. 5, 10, 17, 24, and 30.

Solution:

x 1
𝑥
5 0.2000
10 0.1000
17 0.0588
24 0.0417
30 0.0333
Total 0.4338

Hence,
𝑛
𝐻𝑀 = 𝑛
1
∑ 𝑓 (𝑥 )
𝑖=1 𝑖

5
= = 11.52
0.4338

Example: The marks secured by some students of a class are given below. Calculate the
harmonic mean.

Marks 20 21 22 23 24 25
Number of Students 4 2 7 1 3 1

Solution:

Marks No of students 1 𝑓𝑖
x 𝑥𝑖 𝑥𝑖

20 4 0.0500 0.2000
21 2 0.0476 0.0952
22 7 0.0454 0.3178
23 1 0.0435 0.0435
24 3 0.0417 0.1251
25 1 0.0400 0.0400
Total 18 0.8216
Hence,

𝑛
𝐻𝑀 = 𝑛
1
∑ 𝑓 (𝑥 )
𝑖=1 𝑖

18
= = 21.91
0.8216

4.17 MERITS AND DEMERITS OF HARMONIC MEAN:

Merits:
1. It is rigidly defined.
2. It is based upon all observations.
3. It is suitable for further algebraic treatment.
4. It is the most suitable average when it is desired to give greater weight to smaller
observations and less weight to the larger ones.

Demerits
1. It is not easily understood.
2. It is difficult to compute.
3. It is only a summary figure and may not be the actual item in the series.
4. It gives greater importance to small items and is therefore, useful only when small items
have to be given greater weightage.
5. It is rarely used in grouped data.

4.18 USES OF HARMONIC MEAN:

Harmonic mean is used when we are dealing with speed, rates, averaging ratios like km. per
hour, price per unit, etc.

Relationship between A.M., G.M. and H.M.

1. A.M. ≥ G.M. ≥ H.M., equality sign holds if all the observations are equal.
2. 𝐺. 𝑀. = √𝐴. 𝑀. × 𝐻. 𝑀.
4.19 PARTITION VALUES:
These are the values which divide the series into a number of equal parts. Some of them are
called ‘quartiles’, deciles and percentiles.

(i) Quartiles:
The quartiles divide the distribution in four parts. There are three quartiles. The second quartile
divides the distribution into two halves and therefore is the same as the median. The first
(lower) quartile (Q1) marks off the first one-fourth, the third (upper) quartile (Q3) marks off the
three-fourth.

Raw or ungrouped data:

First arrange the given data in the increasing order and use the formula for Q1 and Q3 then
quartile deviation, Q.D. is given by

𝑄3 − 𝑄1
𝑄. 𝐷. =
2

N+1 N+1
where, Q1 = ( ) th item and Q3 = 3 ( ) th item
4 4

Example: Compute quartiles for the data given below 25,18, 30, 8, 15, 5, 10, 35, 40, 45
Solution:

5, 8, 10, 15, 18, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45

𝑁+1
𝑄1 = ( ) 𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚
4
10 + 1
= ( ) 𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚
4
= (2.75)𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚.
3
= 2𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚 + ( ) (3𝑟𝑑 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚 − 2𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚)
4
3
= 8 + ( ) (10 − 8)
4
3
= 8 + ( )×2
4
= 9.5
𝑁 + 1 𝑡ℎ
𝑄3 = 3 ( ) 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚
4
= 3(2.75)𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚.
 = 8.25𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚
3
= 8𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚 + ( ) (9𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚 − 8𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚)
4
3
= 35 + ( ) (40 − 35)
4
= 35 + 1.25
= 36.25

Discrete Series:
𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟏: Find cumulative frequencies.
N+1
𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟐: Find ( ).
4
N+1
𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟑: See in the cumulative frequencies, the value just greater than ( ) then the
4
corresponding value of x is Q1.
N+1
𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟒: Find 3 ( )
4
N+1
and See in the cumulative frequencies, the value just greater than 3 ( ) then
4
the corresponding value of 𝑥 is Q3 .

Example 15: Compute quartiles for the data given below.

X 5 8 12 15 19 24 30
f 4 3 2 4 5 2 4

Solution:
x f c.f.
5 4 4
8 3 7
12 2 9
15 4 13
19 5 18
24 2 20
30 4 24
Total 24
 𝑁 + 1 𝑡ℎ
𝑄1 = ( ) 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚
4
24 + 1 𝑡ℎ
= ( ) 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚
4
25 𝑡ℎ
= ( ) 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚
4
= 6.25𝑡ℎ = 8
𝑁 + 1 𝑡ℎ
𝑄3 = 3 ( ) 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚
4
= (3 × 6.25)𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚
= 18.75𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚 = 24

Continuous Series:
Step 1: Find cumulative frequencies.
N
𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟐: Find ( ) .
4
𝑁
Step 3: See in the cumulative frequencies, the value just greater( 4 ), then the corresponding

class interval is called first quartile class.

𝑁 𝑁
Step 4: Find 3 ( 4 ), See in the cumulative frequencies the value just greater than 3 ( 4 ) then the

corresponding class interval is called 3rd quartile class. Then apply the respective formulae
𝑁
− 𝑐𝑓1
𝑄1 = 𝑙1 + 4 × ℎ1
𝑓1

𝑁
3 ( 4 ) − 𝑐𝑓3
𝑄3 = 𝑙3 + × ℎ3
𝑓3

where, 𝑙1 = lower limit of the first quartile class,

𝑓1 = frequency of the first quartile class ,
ℎ1 = width of the first quartile class,
𝑐𝑓1 = c. f. preceding the first quartile class,
𝑙3 = 1ower limit of the 3rd quartile class,
𝑓3 = frequency of the 3rd quartile class,
ℎ3 = width of the 3rd quartile class
𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑐𝑓3 = 𝑐. 𝑓. preceding the 3rd quartile class.
(ii) Deciles:
These are the values, which divide the total number of observations into 10 equal parts. These
are 9 deciles D1, D2, …, D9. These are all called first decile, second decile…etc.

Deciles for Raw data or ungrouped data

Example 16: Compute D5 for the data given below 5, 24, 36, 12, 20, 8.

Solution: Arranging the given values in the increasing order 5, 8, 12, 20, 24, 36

𝑁 + 1 𝑡ℎ
𝐷5 = 5 ( ) 𝑜𝑏𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
10
6+1 𝑡ℎ
= 5 ( 10 ) 𝑜𝑏𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

= (3.5)𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑏𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
1
= 3𝑟𝑑 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚 + ( ) [ 4𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚 – 3𝑟𝑑 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚]
2
1
= 12 + ( ) [ 20 – 12]
2
= 16.

Deciles for Grouped data:

Same as quartile.

(iii) Percentiles:
The percentile values divide the distribution into 100 parts each containing 1 percent of the
cases. The percentile (Pk) is that value of the variable up to which lie exactly k% of the total
number of observations.

Relationship:
𝑃25 = 𝑄1 ; 𝑃50 = 𝐷5 = 𝑄2 = 𝑀𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑃75 = 𝑄3

Percentile for Raw Data or Ungrouped Data:

𝑁 + 1 𝑡ℎ
𝑃𝑖 = 𝑖 ( ) 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚
100

Example: Calculate 𝑃15 for the data given below: 5, 24, 36, 12, 20, 8.
Solution: Arranging the given values in the increasing order. 5, 8, 12, 20, 24, 36
𝑁 + 1 𝑡ℎ
𝑃15 = 15 ( ) 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚
100
 6 + 1 𝑡ℎ
= 15 ( ) 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚
100
= (1.05)𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚
= 1𝑠𝑡 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚 + 0.5(2𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚 – 1𝑠𝑡 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑚)
= 5 + 0.5(8 − 5) = 5.15

Percentile for Grouped Data:

𝑖𝑁
− 𝑐𝑓
𝑃𝑖 = 𝑙 + 100 ×ℎ
𝑓

Example: Find P53 for the following frequency distribution.

Class Interval 0-5 5-10 10-15 15-20 20-25 25-30 30-35 35-40

Frequency 5 8 12 16 20 10 4 3

Solution:

Class Interval Frequency c.f.

0-5 5 5

5-10 8 13

10-15 12 25

15-20 16 41

20-25 20 61

25-30 10 71

30-35 4 75

35-40 3 78

Total 78

53𝑁
− 𝑐𝑓 41.34 − 41
𝑃53 = 𝑙 + 100 × ℎ = 20 + × 5 = 20.085
𝑓 20