Question
Mathematics Question on Variance and Standard Deviation
The following is the record of goals scored by team A in a football session:
| No. of goals scored | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. of matches | 1 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 3 |
For the team B, mean number of goals scored per match was 2 with a standard deviation 1.25 goals. Find which team may be considered more consistent?
Answer
The mean and the standard deviation of goals scored by team A are calculated as follows
| No. of goals scored | No. of matches | fxi | x12 | fx12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1 | 9 | 9 | 1 | 9 |
| 2 | 7 | 14 | 4 | 28 |
| 3 | 5 | 15 | 9 | 45 |
| 4 | 3 | 12 | 16 | 48 |
| - | 25 | 50 | - | 130 |
Mean=∑i=15fi∑i=15fixi=2550=2
Thus, the mean of both the teams is same.
σ=N1√N∑fixi2−(∑fixi)2
=251√25×130−(50)2
251√750
=251×27.38
=1.09
The standard deviation of team B is 1.25 goals.
The average number of goals scored by both the teams is same i.e., 2. Therefore, the team with lower standard deviation will be more consistent.
Thus, team A is more consistent than team B.
