The restriction that is built into the calculation of the standard error of the mean, the restriction that causes df to be N - 1, is that
A) N must be small
B) standard errors must be positive numbers
C) a random sample must be used
D) the sum of the deviation scores must be zero.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The restriction that causes degrees of freedom (df) to be N - 1 in the calculation of the standard error of the mean is that the sum of the deviation scores from the mean must be zero. This is a property of deviation scores in any sample, reflecting that one parameter (the mean) has been estimated from the sample data, thus reducing the degrees of freedom by one.

The Restriction That Is Built into the Calculation of the Standard