Suppose most students in a class score between 90 and 100 on an exam, resulting in a narrow range of 10. If one student scores a 20, the range suddenly jumps to 80. What does this inflated value demonstrate about the range as a measure of variability?

Match each test-score scenario with the most accurate interpretation of its range as a measure of variability.

A psychology researcher is analyzing reaction times in a memory task. Most participants responded within a 10-millisecond cluster (between 200ms and 210ms), but one participant took 900ms. Arrange the steps of the logical analysis used to determine why the range provides a misleading representation of the group's typical variability in this scenario.

Suppose a researcher evaluates a group's performance as 'highly variable' because the range of their scores is $80$, despite the fact that every participant except for one scored between $90$ and $100$ (with the single outlier scoring $20$). This conclusion provides a scientifically valid evaluation of the group's typical consistency.

A psychology researcher is designing a tutorial to demonstrate how a single extreme score can distort the representation of a group's consistency. The goal is to create a dataset ($N=5$) where the majority of participants are highly similar (within a cluster of $10$ milliseconds), but the range is exactly $400$ milliseconds. Which of the following datasets successfully fulfills this design?

If most students in a class score between $90$ and $100$ on an exam, a single student scoring a $20$ will cause the range to jump from $10$ to $80$. This inflated range of $80$ provides an accurate measure of the typical variability of the class's scores.

A researcher is studying the number of words recalled in a memory task. For the first four participants, the scores are 18, 19, 20, and 21, resulting in a range of 3. If a fifth participant scores a 2, the new range for the group becomes _____.

In the exam score example demonstrating how outliers distort the range, most students score between $90$ and $100$, resulting in a narrow range of $10$. If a single student scores a $20$, the range suddenly jumps to _____.

A researcher records five exam scores for each of four different classes. Analyze each score set and match it to the most accurate conclusion about whether the range faithfully represents the class's variability.

A researcher collects exam scores and notices that one student scored far below everyone else. She must decide whether to report the range as the sole measure of variability or whether that would misrepresent the class's consistency. Arrange the following steps in the correct order to critically evaluate the range's appropriateness and justify a final reporting decision.

Based on the example of exam scores, explain how a single outlier affects the calculation of the range and why the resulting value is misleading.

Diagnose how the single score of $20$ impacts the range calculation. Clarify what false impression the resulting range of $80$ gives about the group, and describe the actual consistency of the majority of the students.

A researcher is studying exam scores where most students score between $90$ and $100$ (range of $10$) except for one student who scores a $20$. If they decide to report the class's variability as 'highly variable' because the range is $80$, how would you apply the concept of outlier sensitivity to correct their interpretation in one to three sentences?