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Evaluating statistical claims: Observational studies and experiments SAT question
Math · Problem-Solving and Data Analysis · Medium · Answer it here, explanation included.
A survey was conducted using a sample of history professors selected at random from the California State Universities. The professors surveyed were asked to name the publishers of their current texts. What is the largest population to which the results of the survey can be generalized?
ExplanationShow
Choice C is correct. Selecting a sample at random when conducting a survey allows the results to be generalized to the population from which the sample was selected, but not beyond this population. In this situation, the population that the sample was selected from is history professors from the California State Universities. Therefore, the largest population to which the results of the survey can be generalized is all history professors at all California State Universities.
Choices A, B, and D are incorrect. Since the sample was selected at random from history professors from the California State Universities, the results of the survey can’t be generalized to all professors in the United States, all history professors in the United States, or all professors at all California State Universities. All three of these populations may use different texts and therefore may name different publishers.
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