Descriptive statistics vs inferential statistics: descriptive statistics are used to

Descriptive statistics vs inferential statistics: descriptive statistics are used to

• A. Generalize findings to the population
• B. Collect new data
• C. Summarize data
• D. Test causal relationships

Answer: (C)

Descriptive statistics are used to summarize data. They provide a concise picture of what the data look like, using measures of central tendency (like mean, median, and mode), measures of spread (such as range, variance, and standard deviation), and frequency distributions or graphs. They describe the observed dataset itself, not inferences beyond it. If you want to generalize findings to a population or test causal relationships, you’d be in the realm of inferential statistics, which rely on probability to draw conclusions beyond the data. Collecting new data is simply gathering information, not a statistical summary. So the purpose is to summarize the data.

Descriptive statistics are used to summarize data. They provide a concise picture of what the data look like, using measures of central tendency (like mean, median, and mode), measures of spread (such as range, variance, and standard deviation), and frequency distributions or graphs. They describe the observed dataset itself, not inferences beyond it. If you want to generalize findings to a population or test causal relationships, you’d be in the realm of inferential statistics, which rely on probability to draw conclusions beyond the data. Collecting new data is simply gathering information, not a statistical summary. So the purpose is to summarize the data.