What is the difference between controlling for mean versus median income in analyses of income inequality?

T A Blakely1, I Kawachi

  • 1Department of Health and Social Behavior at the Harvard Center for Society and Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, USA. tblakely@wnmeds.ac.nz

Abstract

No abstract available in PubMed .

Related Concept Videos

Median01:08

Median

Besides mean, the median is a widely used measure of central tendency. Typically, median is defined as the central or middle value of a data set, measured by arranging the data elements in an increasing or decreasing order. Since this middle value is not affected by the precise numerical values of the outliers or fluctuations, it is insensitive to them. Hence, in cases where a data set may have outliers or the extreme values are not known, the median is a better measure of the central tendency...
Measures of Central Tendency02:16

Measures of Central Tendency

The "center" of a data set is also a way of describing location. The two most widely used measures of the "center" of the data are the mean (average) and the median. The words "mean" and "average" are often used interchangeably. The substitution of one word for the other is common practice. The technical term is "arithmetic mean" and "average" is technically a center location. However, in practice among non-statisticians, "average" is commonly accepted for "arithmetic mean."
Skewness01:06

Skewness

The measures of central tendency calculated from a data set may not reveal much about its intrinsic distribution. If a plot is made of the data set’s values, the mean and the median may not only differ, but also the plot may have more values on one side of the central tendencies. Such a data set is said to be skewed towards that side.
The longer the tail of the plot on one side, the more skewed it is. The skewness of a data set’s values suggests that the measures of central tendency are...
Sign Test for Median of Single Population01:20

Sign Test for Median of Single Population

In general, the sign test serves as a nonparametric method to test hypotheses about the median of a single population when the data does not follow a known distribution. This simplicity makes it particularly useful for small sample sizes or when the assumptions of parametric tests cannot be met. The process begins with identifying a null hypothesis, typically stating that the population median equals a specific value. The alternative hypothesis could be that the median is either not equal to,...
Statistical Analysis: Overview01:11

Statistical Analysis: Overview

When we take repeated measurements on the same or replicated samples, we will observe inconsistencies in the magnitude. These inconsistencies are called errors. To categorize and characterize these results and their errors, the researcher can use statistical analysis to determine the quality of the measurements and/or suitability of the methods.
One of the most commonly used statistical quantifiers is the mean, which is the ratio between the sum of the numerical values of all results and the...
Central Tendency: Analysis01:10

Central Tendency: Analysis

Measures of central tendency are tools used in biostatistics to identify the average or center of a dataset. They offer a single representative value for understanding and summarizing data distribution.
The mean is one such measure, calculated by totaling all values in a dataset and dividing by the number of values. For instance, the mean blood pressure reading (120, 130, 140, 150) would be 135. However, the mean can be affected by extreme values or outliers.
The median, another measure,...