A negative z-score indicates a value the average. However, a negative z-score indicates a value closer to the mean, thus a better performance in comparison.

A z-score tells how far a value is from the mean in standard-deviation units. A negative z-score means the value is below the average, so “below” is the correct choice. A negative score does not necessarily mean the value is closer to the mean or a better performance; that depends on how far below the mean it is and what is being measured.

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