Suppose a recent issue of the campus newspaper reported a survey about students' attitudes toward proposed changes in the required curriculum.Which of the following would you need to focus on most to decide whether the survey results reported in the paper can be generalized to the entire population of students?
A)number of students in the sample
B)distinctiveness of the sample
C)representativeness of the sample
D)variability among students in the sample

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The most important factor to consider when deciding whether survey results can be generalized to a population is the representativeness of the sample. If the sample is not representative of the population, then the survey results cannot be generalized. For example, if the survey only included students from one specific major or department, the results may not be applicable to all students on campus. Therefore, it is important to focus on whether the sample was representative of the entire population of students. A larger sample size (option A) and variability among students in the sample (option D) can also impact the generalizability of survey results, but representativeness should be the primary focus. The distinctiveness of the sample (option B) is not a relevant factor for determining generalizability.

Suppose a Recent Issue of the Campus Newspaper Reported a Survey