Deck 2: Central Tendency and Variability

Question 1

Based on the scores 1,2,3,4,5,6,6,8,8,8,9,and 10,a score of 6 is the

A)mean.
B)median.
C)mode.
D)standard deviation.

Answer 1

median.

Question 2

The middle value in a set of scores arranged from lowest to highest is the

A)mean.
B)mode.
C)average.
D)median.

Answer 2

median.

Question 3

Based on the scores 1,2,3,4,5,6,6,8,8,8,9,and 10,a score of 8 is the

A)mean.
B)median.
C)mode.
D)standard deviation.

Answer 3

mode.

Question 4

Which statement is true for the scores of 1,2,3,4,5,5,7,8,9,and 10?

A)The mode is greater than the median.
B)The median is greater than the mean.
C)The mean is greater than the median.
D)The mean is less than the mode.

Question 5

The median of the scores 1,2,4,4,4,6,7,8,8,9,and 10 is

A)4
B)5.7
C)6
D)8

Question 6

Based on the scores 1,9,3,6,1,2,6,2,2,and 8,a score of 2 is the

A)mode.
B)median.
C)mean.
D)standard deviation.

Question 7

The correct description of the mean is

A)the sum of the scores that is most frequent in a distribution.
B)the middle score if all the scores are ordered from lowest to highest.
C)the average of the squared deviations from the median.
D)the sum of the scores divided by the number of scores.

Question 8

A psychologist studying the rate at which infants in three different countries vocalized distress obtained the scores below from each country.Which group of infants showed the highest mean rate of distress vocalization?

A)Country A
B)Country B
C)Country C
D)Countries B and C were equally high.

Question 9

The mode of the following scores 3,4,6,7,10,10,and 30 is

A)3
B)7
C)8)5
D)10

Question 10

The ΣX for the scores 1,1,8,and 10 is

A)4
B)4)5
C)5
D)20

Question 11

What is the median of the scores 0,0,0,2,5,6,and 8?

A)0
B)2
C)2.5
D)3

Question 12

In statistical formulas,N stands for

A)the number of different values for a variable.
B)the number of scores.
C)the normal curve.
D)the normalized Z score.

Question 13

The most common single value in a group of scores is the

A)mode.
B)mean.
C)median.
D)average.

Question 14

Which statement is true for the scores of 1,2,3,4,5,5,7,8,9,and 10?

A)The mean is less than the median.
B)The mean is less than the mode.
C)The median and mode are both greater than the mean.
D)The median and mode are the same.

Question 15

The mean and the mode for a statistics test will be the same if the distribution is

A)skewed.
B)normal.
C)bimodal.
D)multimodal.

Question 16

The correct formula for the mean is

A)M = ΣX / N
B)M = ΣX2 / N
C)M = (ΣX)² / N
D)M = Σ(X−M)² / N

Question 17

When describing a nominal variable,the best measure of central tendency to use is the

A)mean.
B)median.
C)mode.
D)standard deviation.

Question 18

The ordinary average of a group of numbers is the

A)median.
B)mean.
C)standard deviation.
D)mode.

Question 19

The mode of the scores 1,2,4,4,4,6,7,8,8,9,and 10 is

A)4
B)5.7
C)6
D)8

Question 20

Based on the scores 1,9,3,6,1,2,6,2,2,and 8,a score of 4 is the

A)mode.
B)median.
C)mean.
D)standard deviation.

Question 21

If a cognitive psychologist finds that a group of one-year-old children can name 3,3,3,4,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,and 35 things,the most useful measure of central tendency will be the

A)mean.
B)median.
C)mode.
D)range.

Question 22

A psychologist conducts a survey of job satisfaction among laborers and white-collar workers using a rating scale on which 1 indicates low satisfaction and 10 indicates high satisfaction.The findings are that laborers have a mean job satisfaction score of 4 and a variance of 1; white-collar workers have a mean job satisfaction score of 7 and a variance of 10.Which statement most completely describes the meaning of these numbers?

A)White-collar workers are more satisfied than laborers.
B)White-collar workers and laborers are about equally satisfied.
C)Laborers generally are less satisfied than white-collar workers,but laborers are just as likely to be highly satisfied as white-collar workers are to be highly dissatisfied.
D)Laborers are less satisfied than white-collar workers,and most laborers are about equally dissatisfied,while there is more variation in the satisfaction of white-collar workers.

Question 23

Readers of research articles may expect to find the mean reported in

A)the text.
B)a table.
C)a graph.
D)any of the above.

Question 24

The variance of the scores 1,4,and 7 is

A)3
B)4
C)6
D)9

Question 25

The formula for the standard deviation used in this chapter is

A)SD²
B)SD
C)√SD²
D)Σ(X−M)²

Question 26

The median is greater than the mean in a distribution that is

A)symmetrical.
B)skewed to the right.
C)normal.
D)skewed to the left.

Question 27

If the variance is 9,then the standard deviation is

A)18
B)81
C)3
D)4.5

Question 28

A psychologist studying cultural diversity who conducts a few lengthy interviews with members of various cultural communities is using

A)behavioral techniques.
B)quantitative techniques.
C)qualitative techniques.
D)positivistic techniques.

Question 29

SS refers to

A)SD²
B)variance computed using the N−1 formula
C)standard deviation
D)Σ(X−M)²

Question 30

The variance is the same as the

A)average of the squared deviations.
B)sum of the squared deviations.
C)average of the absolute deviations.
D)sum of the absolute deviations.

Question 31

The symbol for the variance used in this chapter is

A)SD²
B)SD
C)√SD²
D)Σ(X−M)²

Question 32

The variance is figured by dividing the sum of squared deviations by

A)N)
B)the mean.
C)the standard deviation.
D)the average Z score.

Question 33

In a sample of three people,the first person has a score 5 points above the mean,and the second person has a score 3 points above the mean.Which of the following provides the most accurate description of the score for the third person?

A)It is below the mean.
B)It is below the mean by 4 points.
C)It is below the mean by 8 points.
D)It cannot be described based on the information provided.

Question 34

If the standard deviation is 4,the variance is

A)2
B)4
C)8
D)16

Question 35

When a distribution is skewed to the right

A)the median is greater than the mean.
B)the mean and the median are the same.
C)the mean is greater than the median.
D)the mean and the median are equal.

Question 36

A distribution is negatively skewed.The measures of central tendency are most likely to be in this order

A)mean = 30,median = 50,mode = 70
B)mean = 30,median = 70,mode = 50
C)mean = 50,median = 50,mode = 50
D)mean = 70,median = 50,mode = 30

Question 37

The standard deviation of the scores: 2,0,1,8,and 4 is

A)0)67
B)2)83
C)3
D)8

Question 38

The variance of the scores: 0,1,1,and 2 is

A).25
B).5
C)√)5
D)1

Question 39

In a sample of four people,Person A has a score 5 points below the mean,Person B has a score 3 points above the mean,and Person C has a score 2 points above the mean.Which of the following provides the most accurate description of the score for Person D?

A)It is equal to 0.
B)It is equal to the mean.
C)It is below the mean.
D)It is above the mean.

Question 40

In a symmetrical distribution with a mean of 15,the median would be

A)equal to 15
B)less than 15
C)greater than 15
D)either B or C

Question 41

A measure of central tendency that is not very affected by outliers is the __________.

Question 42

When __________ are summed,the result will always equal zero.

Question 43

In the group of scores 2,81,82,82,and 84,the outlier is __________.

Question 44

N of the scores 6,7,7,and 8 is __________.

Question 45

In symbols,a deviation score is __________.

Question 46

The mean,median,and mode will be the same when the distribution is __________.

Question 47

The mean of the scores 2,2,2,and 6 is __________.

Question 48

A deviation score is the difference between the score and the __________.

Question 49

A general name for the representative value of a group of scores is __________.

Question 50

The symbol used in the textbook for the variance of a group of scores is __________.

Question 51

The __________ is the usual way of describing the central tendency of a nominal variable.

Question 52

ΣX / N is the formula for the __________.

Question 53

The median of the scores 6,18,4,21,and 22 is __________.

Question 54

A score with an extremely high or low value (relative to other scores in the distribution)is a(n)__________.

Question 55

If all the scores are ranked from lowest to highest,the median is the __________.

Question 56

The Greek letter that means "add up all the scores that follow" is __________.

Question 57

The value with the most scores is the __________.

Question 58

The standard deviation for the scores 1,7,and 13 is __________.

Question 59

The variance of a group of scores is the average of the __________.

Question 60

The variance for the scores 1,7,and 13 is __________.

Question 61

Behaviorists such as B.F.Skinner sometimes object to the use of statistics in psychology research because averages can distort the pattern of information revealed from observing the behavior of __________.

Question 62

A psychologist interested in people's response to art had seven people indicate their liking for a particular piece of Egyptian sculpture; their ratings were 2,4,4,5,6,7,and 7.
a.Compute the mean,variance,and standard deviation.
b.Explain what you have done and what the results mean to a person who has never had a course in statistics.

Question 63

Another way of symbolizing Σ(X−M)2 is __________.

Question 64

The standard deviation is __________ the variance.

Question 65

A social psychologist gave a survey to 8 active members of a small political action group about how many hours they put into the group's activities each week.The results were as follows: 19,24,30,33,40,41,41,and 44.
a.Compute the mean,variance,and standard deviation.
b.Explain what you have done and what the results mean to a person who has never had a course in statistics.

Question 66

A concierge is interested in how long it takes to bring passengers to the airport and then return to the hotel.The round-trip travel times for six taxi drivers were 45,30,42,45,41,and 43 minutes.
a.Compute the mean,median,and mode.
b.Based on the measures of central tendency,what can you infer about the distribution?
c.Compute the variance and standard deviation.
d.Explain what the results mean to a person who has never had a course in statistics.

Question 67

The __________ is,approximately,the average that a score differs from the mean.

Question 68

The scores of five high-school English teachers on a grammar test were 17,19,14,20,and 20.
a.Compute the mean,variance,and standard deviation.
b.Explain what you have done and what the results mean to a person who has never had a course in statistics.

Question 69

A mathematically equivalent version of a definitional formula that is easier to use when working by hand with many scores is a(n)__________.