Multiplying the values of the variable by the corresponding weights an...
Explanation:
Simple average is defined as the sum of all values of a variable divided by the number of values. In some cases, however, each value may not be equally important. In such situations, a weighted average is used.
A weighted average is a type of average that takes into account the importance, or weight, of each value. The weights are typically represented by a set of numbers that add up to 1.0 or 100%.
To calculate a weighted average, we multiply each value of the variable by the corresponding weight, then add up the products, and finally divide the sum of products by the sum of weights.
For example, let's say we have the following data:
| Value | Weight |
|-------|--------|
| 10 | 0.3 |
| 20 | 0.5 |
| 30 | 0.2 |
To calculate the weighted average, we first multiply each value by its weight:
10 x 0.3 = 3
20 x 0.5 = 10
30 x 0.2 = 6
Then we add up the products:
3 + 10 + 6 = 19
Finally, we divide the sum of products by the sum of weights:
19 ÷ (0.3 + 0.5 + 0.2) = 19 ÷ 1 = 19
Therefore, the weighted average of the data is 19.
In contrast, for a simple average, we would simply add up all the values and divide by the number of values. For our example data, the simple average would be:
(10 + 20 + 30) ÷ 3 = 20
Thus, multiplying the values of the variable by the corresponding weights and then dividing the sum of products by the sum of weights is a method used to calculate a weighted average.
Multiplying the values of the variable by the corresponding weights an...
Weighted average