Of the mean, median, and mode, which measure of center is most affected by outliers? Explain your reasoning including an example with at least 10 data points. make it super short and as a 4th grader would

Answer 1

The mean is the measure of center that is most affected by outliers.

Explanation: The mean is found by adding all the numbers together and then dividing by how many numbers there are. If one number is really big or really small (an outlier), it can make the mean much higher or lower.

Example: Let's say we have these numbers:
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 50

• Mean: (2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 + 8 + 9 + 10 + 50) ÷ 10 = 9.4
• Median: The middle number is 6.5 (average of 6 and 7).
• Mode: There is no number that repeats.

The number 50 is an outlier, making the mean much higher than the median and mode!