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 with okay ish grammar

Answer 1

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

Let's say you have the numbers: 1, 2, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 100.

• The mean (average) is (1+2+2+3+4+5+6+7+8+100) / 10 = 13.8. The big number 100 makes the mean really high.

• The median (middle number) is 4.5 because when you put the numbers in order, the two middle ones are 4 and 5.

• The mode (most common number) is 2, because it shows up the most.

So, the mean changed a lot because of that big 100, but the median and mode stayed the same! That's why the mean is most affected by outliers.