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To calculate Median Absolute Deviation in Excel, you will need to first calculate the median of your data set, then subtract the median from each value in the data set and take the absolute value of the difference. Next, calculate the median of the absolute values of the differences and this will be your Median Absolute Deviation.
The median absolute deviation is a way to measure the spread of values in a dataset.
The formula to calculate median absolute deviation, often abbreviated MAD, is as follows:
MAD = median(|xi – xm|)
where:
- xi: The ith value in the dataset
- xm: The median value in the dataset
The following step-by-step example shows how to calculate the median absolute deviation of a given dataset in Excel.
Step 1: Enter the Data
First, we’ll enter the values for a dataset:
Step 2: Calculate the Median
Next, we’ll calculate the median of the dataset:
The median turns out to be 16.
Step 3: Calculate the Absolute Difference Between Each Value & the Median
Next, we’ll calculate the absolute difference between each value and the median:
Click on cell B2. Then hover over the bottom right corner of the cell until a little cross (+) appears.
Step 4: Calculate the Median Absolute Deviation
Lastly, we will use the following formula to calculate the median absolute deviation of the dataset:
The median absolute deviation turns out to be 8.