What term best describes the entire group of individuals or objects about which a study aims to learn?

What term best describes the entire group of individuals or objects about which a study aims to learn?

• A. Population
• B. Sample
• C. Parameter
• D. Statistic

Answer: (A)

The main idea is distinguishing the group you want to learn about from the data you actually collect. The term that describes the entire group of individuals or objects about which a study aims to learn is the population. It includes every member that shares the characteristics of interest, even those you might not directly observe. In contrast, a sample is just a subset drawn from that population to study in practice. A parameter is a numerical summary (like the true mean or true proportion) that describes the population, usually unknown. A statistic is the corresponding numerical summary computed from the sample, which can vary from sample to sample. So, for a study aiming to learn about everyone in the group, that whole group is the population.

The main idea is distinguishing the group you want to learn about from the data you actually collect. The term that describes the entire group of individuals or objects about which a study aims to learn is the population. It includes every member that shares the characteristics of interest, even those you might not directly observe. In contrast, a sample is just a subset drawn from that population to study in practice. A parameter is a numerical summary (like the true mean or true proportion) that describes the population, usually unknown. A statistic is the corresponding numerical summary computed from the sample, which can vary from sample to sample. So, for a study aiming to learn about everyone in the group, that whole group is the population.