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Day 3 Notes Ethics of Statistics. It’s a Dangerous World Out There Pitfalls and Perils. People often use statistics to attempt to persuade you to their point of view. Purchase? Support? Action?. Bias. One of the most common misuses of statistics Definition: Biased Sample - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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Day 3 NotesEthics of Statistics
It’s a Dangerous World Out TherePitfalls and Perils
People often use statistics to attempt to persuade you to their point of view.
Purchase?Support?Action?
Bias
One of the most common misuses of statisticsDefinition: Biased Sample
A sample that does not represent the intended population and can lead to distorted findings.
Can be intentional or unintentional
Example: National Golf Day
Hand out survey form only at golf coursesDesign the survey:
We would like to propose a national golf holiday, on which everybody gets the day off from work and plays golf all day. (This means you miss school or work, and don’t need permission from anyone.) Are you in favor of this proposal?
A) Yes, most definitelyB) Sure, why not?C) No, I would rather spend the entire day at
school or work.
Sampling Bias
Question Wording
So, we’ve talked about….
Sampling biasQuestion wording
Deceptive Graphs and Charts
Ask yourself:Sodas per capita in the US?Thousands of gallons of soda?Millions of cans?
1996 1997 1998 1999121 136 134 140
Sodas Consumed
Deceptive Graphs and ChartsBetter….
1996 1997 1998 1999121 136 134 140
Sodas ConsumedUSA, Calendar Year
(in millions of gallons)
Deceptive Graphs and Charts
Deceptive Graphs and Charts
Self-selected surveys
Internet polls: You choose whether or not to participateTelevision “phone-in” (WBKO)
Strong feelings, for or againstMissing anyone?
So, we’ve talked about….
Sampling biasQuestion wordingDeceptive graphsSelf-selected surveys
The LEAST You Need to Know…
Statistics is a vital tool that provides
organizations with the necessary
information to make good decisions.
1
The LEAST You Need to Know…
The field of statistics evolved from the
early work of European
mathematicians during the 17th
century.
2
The LEAST You Need to Know…
Descriptive statistics focuses on the
summary or display of data so we can quickly obtain an
overview.
3
The LEAST You Need to Know…
Inferential statistics allows us to make
claims or conclusions about a population
based on a sample of data from that
population.
4
The LEAST You Need to Know…
We are all consumers of statistics and
need to be aware of the potential
misuses that can occur in this field.
5
