Which statistical measure provides an indication of the spread of data around the mean?

The standard deviation is the statistical measure that indicates the spread of data around the mean. It quantifies the amount of variation or dispersion in a set of values. A low standard deviation means that the data points tend to be close to the mean, while a high standard deviation indicates that the data points are spread out over a wider range of values. This measure is particularly useful in forensic analysis, where understanding the variability in data can provide crucial insights into patterns and anomalies.

In contrast, the median identifies the middle value of a dataset when the values are arranged in order, but it does not provide information about the spread of the data. The mode indicates the most frequently occurring value in a dataset, which is also not informative regarding the variability around the mean. The sum simply represents the total of all data points and does not convey information about how those points are distributed in relation to the mean. Thus, standard deviation is the most appropriate measure for understanding the spread of data.