1. What do we
mean by descriptive statistics - data analysis that produces meaningful
"de- summaries of data Patterns
scriptive statistics æHow the data vary across groups/conditions
æRelationships between ditterent variables
Uncertainty
æThe variability within a data set tells us about how certain we can be about
the patterns we see
"Facts" that describe a specific dataset
Critical to capturing how well a sample fits the population from which it
was drawn
æA l l ow us to make estimates about a population
2. Statistics allow us the world and how it works.
to understand æWe collect data to gain understanding/insight.
æDescriptive statistics allow us to describe the data we have collected.
æT h e y are "estimators" that tell us about a population.
æWithout accurate descriptions of a sample, we cannot make good
inferences
3. What is statistics Statistics: science of how we make choices in the presence of incomplete
informa- tion
-Allows us to quantify levels of uncertainty
-Allows us to make categorical statements, accounting for levels of
uncertainty
4. In addition to start with
accurate
descrip- tions of
data, accurate
infer- ences
ALSO re- quire
(amongst other
things):
5. Inferences
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, PSYCH 2811 Question and answers already passed 2025
Good experimental design
æAccount
for/rule out
extraneous/confo
unding variables
Representative
samples
æPopulation accurately
represents the group to
whom the theory applies
Accurate theories
æTheory is close enough
to the truth to be a
reasonable description
FACTS
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