Statistical assumption

Statistical assumption

Statistical assumptions are general assumptions about statistical populations.

Statistics, like all mathematical disciplines, does not generate valid conclusions from nothing. In order to generate interesting conclusions about real statistical populations, it is usually required to make some background assumptions. These must be made with care, because inappropriate assumptions can generate wildly inaccurate conclusions.

The most commonly applied statistical assumptions are:

#independence of observations from each other (see statistical independence)
#independence of observational error from potential confounding effects
#exact or approximate normality of observations (see normal distribution)
#linearity of graded responses to quantitative stimuli (see linear regression)

See also

* Misuse of statistics


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Statistical semantics — is the study of how the statistical patterns of human word usage can be used to figure out what people mean, at least to a level sufficient for information access (Furnas, 2006). How can we figure out what words mean, simply by looking at… …   Wikipedia

  • Statistical mechanics — is the application of probability theory, which includes mathematical tools for dealing with large populations, to the field of mechanics, which is concerned with the motion of particles or objects when subjected to a force.Statistical mechanics …   Wikipedia

  • Statistical inference — In statistics, statistical inference is the process of drawing conclusions from data that are subject to random variation, for example, observational errors or sampling variation.[1] More substantially, the terms statistical inference,… …   Wikipedia

  • Assumption Parish, Louisiana — Infobox U.S. County county = Assumption Parish state = Louisiana founded year = 1807 founded date = seat wl = Napoleonville largest city wl = Pierre Part area total sq mi = 365 area total km2 = 944 area land sq mi = 339 area land km2 = 877 area… …   Wikipedia

  • Statistical ensemble (mathematical physics) — In mathematical physics, especially as introduced into statistical mechanics and thermodynamics by J. Willard Gibbs in 1878, an ensemble (also statistical ensemble or thermodynamic ensemble)cite book |last=Kittel |first=Charles… …   Wikipedia

  • Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders — The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) is published by the American Psychiatric Association and provides a common language and standard criteria for the classification of mental disorders. It is used in the United States… …   Wikipedia

  • Self-Indication Assumption Doomsday argument rebuttal — The Self Indication Assumption Doomsday argument rebuttal is an objection to the Doomsday argument (that there is only a 5% chance of more than twenty times the historic number of humans ever being born) by arguing that the chance of being born… …   Wikipedia

  • Partition function (statistical mechanics) — For other uses, see Partition function (disambiguation). Partition function describe the statistical properties of a system in thermodynamic equilibrium. It is a function of temperature and other parameters, such as the volume enclosing a gas.… …   Wikipedia

  • Underlying Mortality Assumption — Projections of expected death rates used by actuaries to estimate insurance premiums and pension obligations. Underlying mortality assumptions are based on mortality tables, which are statistical tables of expected annual mortality rates. Because …   Investment dictionary

  • Actuarial Assumption — An actuarial assumption is an estimate of an uncertain variable input into a financial model, normally for the purposes of calculating premiums or benefits. For example, a common actuarial assumption relates to predicting a person s lifespan,… …   Investment dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”