What does variance measure in statistical data?

Variance measures the degree to which individual data points in a dataset differ from the mean (average) of that dataset. It quantifies the spread or dispersion of the values in the dataset. When you calculate variance, you take each data point, subtract the mean, square the result to ensure all differences are non-negative, and then average those squared differences. This process provides a numerical value that indicates how much the data points deviate from the mean, helping to understand the variability within the data. Thus, option C accurately describes the concept of variance in statistical analysis.