FTCE General Knowledge Math Practice Test

Which of the following describes a feature of variance?

1. Measures central tendency

2. Measures dispersion from the mean

3. Indicates a linear relationship

4. Defines proportional relationships

The correct answer is: Measures dispersion from the mean

Variance is a statistical measure that quantifies the degree of spread in a set of data points. It specifically gauges how much the individual data points deviate from the mean of the dataset. A higher variance indicates that the data points are more spread out, whereas a lower variance suggests that they are closer to the mean, thereby providing insight into the distribution of data. In this context, measuring dispersion from the mean is the defining feature of variance. It is important to distinguish this from measures of central tendency, which focus on identifying the center of the data, such as the mean, median, or mode. Variance, on the other hand, deals with the variability and distribution of those data points around that central value. Therefore, the correct characterization of variance aligns precisely with the explanation of how it measures dispersion from the mean.