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Difficulty: EasyStatistical Sampling and Studies

A researcher at a university wants to estimate the average number of hours that students at the university spend studying per week. The researcher randomly selects 200200 students from a database of all students enrolled at the university to participate in a survey. Which of the following is the largest population to which the results of the survey can be most reasonably generalized?

  1. All students enrolled at the universityAnswer
  2. B
    All college students in the nation
  3. C
    Only the 200 students who were selected for the survey
  4. D
    All students who study more than the average number of hours

Answer

All students enrolled at the university
The correct option is the one stating that the results can be generalized to all students enrolled at the university. In an observational study or survey, results can be generalized to the population from which the sample was randomly selected. Here, the database used for selection included all students enrolled at the university, making them the target population.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the population from which the sample was drawn.
The sample of 200200 students was randomly selected from a database containing all students enrolled at the university.
Generalization of survey results requires that the sample be randomly selected from the target population.
2
Determine the scope of the generalization based on the random sampling design.
The results can be generalized to the entire population of students enrolled at the university, but not to broader populations (like all college students in the nation) or restricted biased subgroups.
Random selection ensures that the sample is representative of the population from which it was drawn.

Key Concept

Generalizing results from a random sample to the parent population
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Topics

Statistical Sampling and Studies

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