Which term is defined as the middle score in a distribution?

• A. The middle score in a distribution
• B. The most frequently occurring score in a distribution
• C. The sum of a sequence
• D. The average of all scores

Answer: (A)

The middle score in a distribution is called the median. To find it, line all the scores up from smallest to largest and pick the value right in the middle. If there’s an odd number of scores, there’s a single middle value. If there’s an even number, the median is the average of the two central values. The median represents a typical center less swayed by extreme values than the mean. The other ideas refer to different concepts: the mode is the most frequent score, the sum is the total when you add all scores, and the average (mean) is the total divided by how many scores there are. So the middle value is the median.