What is the time complexity of finding the maximum element in a linked list?

Practice Questions

Q1
What is the time complexity of finding the maximum element in a linked list?
  1. O(1)
  2. O(n)
  3. O(log n)
  4. O(n^2)

Questions & Step-by-Step Solutions

What is the time complexity of finding the maximum element in a linked list?
  • Step 1: Understand what a linked list is. A linked list is a collection of nodes where each node contains a value and a reference to the next node.
  • Step 2: To find the maximum element, we need to look at each node in the linked list one by one.
  • Step 3: Start at the first node and keep track of the maximum value found so far.
  • Step 4: Move to the next node and compare its value with the current maximum value.
  • Step 5: Repeat this process until you reach the end of the linked list.
  • Step 6: Since you have to check every node to ensure you find the maximum, the time taken grows with the number of nodes.
  • Step 7: If there are 'n' nodes in the linked list, you will need to check all 'n' nodes.
  • Step 8: Therefore, the time complexity for finding the maximum element in a linked list is O(n).
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