Page 5 Flashcards
(19 cards)
Cause-and-effect
Related to whether we say one variable is causing changes in the other variable, versus other variables that may be related to these two variables.
Confidence interval
An interval of plausible values for a population parameter; the interval of values within the margin of error of a statistic.
Distribution
The pattern of variation in data
Generalizability
Related to whether the results from the sample can be generalized to a larger population.
Margin of error
The expected amount of random variation in a statistic; often defined for 95% confidence interval.
Parameter
A numerical result summarizing a population (e.g. mean, proportion).
Population
A larger collection of individuals that we would like to generalize our results to.
P-value
The probability of observing a particular outcome in a sample, or more extreme, under a conjecture about the larger population or process.
Random assignment
Using a probability-based method to divide a sample into treatment groups.
Random sampling
Using a probability-based method to select a subset of individuals for the same from the population.
Reliability
The consistency of a measure.
Sample
The collection of individuals on which we collect data.
Statistic
A numerical result computed from a sample (e.g. mean, proportion).
Statistical significance
A result is statistically significant if it is unlikely to arise by chance alone.
Validity
The degree to which a measure is assessing what it is intended to measure
A fundamental principle of statistics is that:
Data vary.
In the “climber study” researchers varied whether the “helper” character was on the child’s right or left side. This is done to:
Control variables.
A researcher puts the names of all possible subjects in a hat and draws out 10 for the study so she has a ___.
Random sample.
A political poll is not perfectly accurate. The measure of how confident the researcher is in the accuracy is called the ___.
Margin of error.
