Question

29. Family income in the middle class: Bauer et al. (2011) identified the median income of a middle-class family in their sample to be $84,200 annually; the mean family income was $85,300 annually. In their data, the lowest family income reported in this group was $65,100 annually, and the highest family income reported was $103,400 annually. Based on the data given, was the mean an appropriate value to summarize these data

Answer 1

No it is not

Explanation:

The median is 84200

The mean is 85300

Low income is 65100

High income is 103400

From this information, we can see a skewed data. The mean would not be a good estimate value. Rather the center (median) would be more appropriate.

When we calculate the middle value for this data

65100+103400 = 168500/2 = 84250

84250 is closer to the median score of 84200. The median is best in the presence of outliers.