When a standard deviation is calculated from sample data,the denominator in the formula SHOULD be ______.
A)the sum of all values of Y
B)the mean of Y
C)N
D)N − 1

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

When calculating the standard deviation from a sample, the denominator in the formula should be N - 1, where N is the sample size. This is because using N as the denominator gives a biased estimate of the standard deviation. The correction factor of subtracting 1 from N in the denominator results in an unbiased estimate of the population standard deviation.

When a Standard Deviation Is Calculated from Sample Data,the Denominator