Greetings to all stats historians out there
A student asked today, upon starting discussion of the standard deviation,
why we do not simply use the average (mean) absolute value of the deviation
scores, rather than taking the square root of the sum of squares. Many
introductory stats texts provide no explicit rationale or history of the
standard deviation formula. The mean absolute value of the deviation scores
would seem to be a reasonable descriptive measure of the variability of the
scores.
TIA for any help you can provide.
Linda Tollefsrud
University of Wisconsin - Barron County
1800 College Drive
Rice Lake, WI 54868-2497
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
(715) 234-8176 ext. 5417
