A video game player had the following scores: 287, 389, 287, 329, 295, 290, 397, 387, 365. What does the IQR indicate about this dataset?(1 point)

Responses

An IQR of 99.5 indicates that the video game player had a relatively small variability for their middle scores.
An IQR of 99.5 indicates that the video game player had a relatively small variability for their middle scores.

An IQR of 329 indicates that the center of the data is around this score.
An IQR of 329 indicates that the center of the data is around this score.

An IQR of 99.5 indicates that the average score was 99.5 points.
An IQR of 99.5 indicates that the average score was 99.5 points.

An IQR of 329 indicates that the video game player had a relatively large variability for their middle scores.

1 answer

To determine the correct interpretation of the IQR (Interquartile Range) for the given scores, let's first calculate the IQR:

  1. Order the scores:
    287, 287, 290, 295, 329, 365, 387, 389, 397

  2. Find Q1 (the first quartile) and Q3 (the third quartile):

    • Since there are 9 scores, the median (Q2) is the 5th score: 329.
    • To find Q1, we look at the first half of the data (the first 4 scores): 287, 287, 290, 295. The median of these scores is 288.5, so Q1 = 288.5.
    • To find Q3, we look at the second half of the data (the last 4 scores): 365, 387, 389, 397. The median of these scores is 388, so Q3 = 388.
  3. Calculate the IQR: \[ \text{IQR} = Q3 - Q1 = 388 - 288.5 = 99.5 \]

Now, we can analyze the IQR. The IQR of 99.5 indicates the range within which the middle 50% of the scores fall, suggesting there's a moderate level of variability in the central scores of the dataset.

Now let's evaluate the response options:

  1. An IQR of 99.5 indicates that the video game player had a relatively small variability for their middle scores.

    • This statement is inaccurate; 99.5 indicates moderate variability, not small.
  2. An IQR of 329 indicates that the center of the data is around this score.

    • This statement is incorrect; Q2 is where the center of the data is, not the IQR.
  3. An IQR of 99.5 indicates that the average score was 99.5 points.

    • This statement is incorrect; the IQR does not reflect the average score.
  4. An IQR of 99.5 indicates that the video game player had a relatively large variability for their middle scores.

    • This option correctly indicates that an IQR of 99.5 suggests that there is a relatively large variability in the middle scores of the dataset.

Therefore, the correct response is: An IQR of 99.5 indicates that the video game player had a relatively large variability for their middle scores.