Which statement best describes quartiles?

Which statement best describes quartiles?

• A. The three values that cut an ordered data set into four equal parts, known as Q1, Q2, and Q3.
• B. The maximum value.
• C. The mean.
• D. The measures of central tendency.

Answer: (A)

Quartiles are the three values that divide an ordered data set into four equal parts. These cut points—Q1, Q2, and Q3—mark the 25th, 50th (the median), and 75th percentiles, respectively, so sorting the data reveals four roughly equal-sized groups. The spread of the middle half is captured by the interquartile range, Q3 minus Q1, which highlights where most data lie and is less affected by outliers than the overall range. This concept is different from the maximum, which is just the single largest value, and from the mean, a single summary of center. Quartiles provide a way to describe the distribution by showing where data lie relative to the overall set.

Quartiles are the three values that divide an ordered data set into four equal parts. These cut points—Q1, Q2, and Q3—mark the 25th, 50th (the median), and 75th percentiles, respectively, so sorting the data reveals four roughly equal-sized groups. The spread of the middle half is captured by the interquartile range, Q3 minus Q1, which highlights where most data lie and is less affected by outliers than the overall range. This concept is different from the maximum, which is just the single largest value, and from the mean, a single summary of center. Quartiles provide a way to describe the distribution by showing where data lie relative to the overall set.