Question 1

Which of the following best describes the difference between a parameter and a statistic?

Accepted Answer

A parameter is a numerical value describing a population, while a statistic is a numerical value describing a sample.

Question 2

A researcher wants to know the average income of all adults in a city. She surveys 500 randomly selected adults and calculates their average income. In this scenario, what is the population?

Accepted Answer

All adults in the city

Question 3

Which of the following is an example of inferential statistics?

Accepted Answer

Predicting the outcome of a national election based on a poll of 1,000 voters

Question 4

A company wants to know the percentage of its customers who are satisfied with their service. They send a survey to all customers but only analyze responses from those who reply. What is the sample in this study?

Accepted Answer

The customers who responded to the survey

Question 5

Which of the following statements is TRUE about a census?

Accepted Answer

A census collects data from every member of the population.

Question 6

Suppose a news report states, “Based on a survey of 2,000 U.S. adults, 60% support a new policy.” Which of the following is a statistic?

Accepted Answer

The 60% support found in the survey

Question 7

Which of the following best illustrates a representative sample?

Accepted Answer

Randomly selecting students from all majors and years at a university to participate in a survey

Question 8

A variable is defined as:

Accepted Answer

A characteristic that changes among members of a population

Question 9

Which of the following is an example of descriptive statistics?

Accepted Answer

Reporting that the average test score in a class was 82%

Question 10

Why is it important for a sample to be representative of the population?

Accepted Answer

So that conclusions drawn from the sample are likely to be accurate for the population

Question 11

A medical researcher collects the blood pressure readings of 100 patients to estimate the average blood pressure of all patients in a hospital. Which term best describes the average calculated from these 100 patients?

Accepted Answer

Statistic

Question 12

Which of the following is NOT a function of descriptive statistics?

Accepted Answer

Making predictions about a population based on sample data

Question 13

If a study collects the age, income, and exercise frequency of participants, what are these examples of?

Accepted Answer

Variables

Question 14

A university wants to know the average GPA of all its students. It surveys 300 students and finds an average GPA of 3.2. Which of the following is the parameter?

Accepted Answer

The true average GPA of all university students

Question 15

Which of the following best describes the main goal of statistics?

Accepted Answer

To support good decision-making by gathering, describing, and analyzing data

Question 16

A pollster wants to estimate the percentage of voters who support a new law. She surveys 1,500 voters and finds that 55% support the law. Which of the following is the population?

Accepted Answer

All voters

Question 17

Which of the following scenarios is most likely to result in a misleading conclusion due to a bad sample?

Accepted Answer

Surveying only people from one neighborhood to represent an entire city

Question 18

Which of the following equations correctly represents the relationship between a population, a sample, and their respective numerical summaries?

Accepted Answer

$$	ext{Population} \xrightarrow{	ext{Sample}} 	ext{Sample} \xrightarrow{	ext{Statistic}}$$

Question 19

A study reports, “Based on our data, we estimate that 70% of all city residents recycle regularly.” This statement is an example of:

Accepted Answer

Inferential statistics

Question 20

Which of the following best explains why most studies use samples instead of a census?

Accepted Answer

Studying the entire population is usually too expensive or impractical

Statistics Lesson 1.1: Foundations and Key Concepts

Study Guide - Practice Questions

Study Guide - Flashcards