Certified Tumor Registrar (CTR) Practice Exam

The difference between the highest and lowest value in a data set is referred to as what?

1. Mean

2. Median

3. Range

4. Standard deviation

The correct answer is: Range

The correct answer is the term that describes the difference between the highest and lowest values in a data set, which is known as the range. The range provides a measure of the spread or dispersion of the data, indicating how much variation exists between the maximum and minimum values. This is especially useful in understanding the overall distribution of the data set, allowing analysts to easily assess the extent of variability present. In contrast, the mean is the average of all values in the data set, the median is the middle value when the data set is ordered, and standard deviation quantifies the amount of variation or dispersion of a set of values around the mean. While all of these terms provide valuable insights into the nature of data, they measure different aspects and do not convey the simple concept of the difference between the highest and lowest values, which is specifically captured by the range.