Statistics is the study of the ways data or information is collected, organized and interpreted. This week, we studied the bias that can exist in the ways information is collected . The expression “Lies, d* lies and statistics” refers to the way numbers can be used to mislead. Sometimes people try to persuade others using a false statistic. Let me give an example. If I say that Ms. Babb is the best teacher in the world because I conducted a survey and found that 100 % of the people interviewed stated that I was the best teacher ever, this sounds pretty impressive, right! But let’s look more closely at the survey. Who was surveyed? What is the population ? What was the sample? If I spoke to 10 members of my own family, would you still believe that the statistic could give an accurate finding about who the best teacher was ?
As we discussed in class, surveys can be biased against or in favour of particular groups. We talked about the differences between a census and a sample, and the importance of samples being representative of the population.
Here are some statistics. Comment below on any possible biases. Are there any problems in how the data is being collected ?
1. In an online study of 50, 000 homes in England, researchers found that 47% of the housewives do most of their shopping on the internet.
2. Every third person at a local Good life gym was asked how regularly they exercised. The survey concluded/found that Canadians work out 4 times per week.
3. In a survey, every fifth person coming out of a Canadian police station was asked if they had ever been the victim of a violent crime. The survey concluded that Canada is an extremely violent place, since there was a 7 out of 10 chance that someone in Canada would be the victim of a crime.
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ReplyDelete1.This study is biased in favor of people with internet and biased against everyone else. This is because the study was done on the internet therefore people without internet could not participate in the study.
ReplyDelete2. This survey is biased in favor of people that work out on a regular basis and biased against everyone else. This is because people that go to the gym obviously work out and business people might not have time.
3. This survey is biased in favor of the victims of the crime and biased against everyone else. This is because most of the time people coming out of a police station are victims or culprits rather than regular people.
1. This survey is bias in favour the housewives that do their sopping online and bias against people that don't shop online.
ReplyDelete2. This survey is bias in favour of people that go to Good life gym and bias against people that don't go to Good life gym.
3. This survey is bias in favour of people that where victims of a cirm that went to that police station and bias against people that are not victims of a crime.
Christina P
The problem with this statistic is that anyone who works at the canadian police station will think that Canada is a very violent place because most of their life is chasing after robbers,killers etc.(depending on what type of cop they are.)The cops who are asked this question will mostly say they were a victim of a crime because that is also what they usually do. If you asked a kid or an adult (who is not a cop(adult))they woud probably say they have'nt been in a crime or Canada is not a violent place. This statistic is biased in favour if those who are cop and biased against those wh are not.
ReplyDelete-dani
I don't think number 3 is correct because not only Canadians are victims in crimes.
ReplyDeleteI also don't think number 2 is correct because the only reason they would find the results of Canadians is because a local gym here means a local gym in Canada.
-Tiff.h
For number one, it would be biased in favor of people with computers. It would be biased against people without computers. Say if the survey was done in winter, nobody would want to go out in the cold, so instead of going out to buy something at a store, they shopped on line
ReplyDeleteFor number two, it is biased in favor of people who work out at the gym. If it is at the gym, more people would workout more then usual. If it was at a grocery store, then the answer would be different. It is biased against people who don't work out and don't have the time. Some people would work out more if they could, but some just don't have the time.
For number three, it is biased in favor of people in the police station. If they come out of a police station, then they probobly were a victum or the person who did the crime. If it were at a mall or a daycare then the answer would be much different. It is biased against people who aren't at the police station
1. This is biased against the houswives in England who are not in one of the 50,000 homes participating in the survey. This is also against the houswives who do not have a computer or Internet. Of course, this survey is biased in favour of the houswives who participated and have the internet.
ReplyDelete2.This is biased against the people who do not work out at that gym on that day or just do not work out at all. The question was asked at a gym where the people there will almost certainly will be working out often. The survey is biased in favour of those people.
3.This is biased against people who are not at all violent and Canada. The question was asked at the wrong place. You would not go to the police station to report something happy like you got a new puppy. People report things like crime and other unhappy things. Also now people will think Canada is a bad place to live. Unfortunately this is in favour of the people who are violent and want to cause havoc.
1. The bias is in favour of the housewives who have computers and the internet and the housewives who lived in one of those 50,000 homes. The bias is against the housewives who don’t have internet and computers and the housewives who don’t live in one of those 50,000 homes.
ReplyDelete2. The bias is in favour of the people who go to the Good Life gym and the people who were one of the every third person at the gym. The bias is against the people who don’t go to the Good Life gym and the people who weren’t one of the every third person at the gym.
3. The bias is in favour of every fifth person who exits the Canadian police station. The bias is against the people who weren’t one of the every fifth person that exits the Canadian police station. The results aren’t correct because not a lot of people go to Canadian police stations so nobody would exit the police stations unless they’re police officers. The only people who would be exiting police stations are most likely to be prisoners who have just been released from prison. So obviously the prisoners would be victims of a violent crime.
-Adam
1.This is biased in favour of housewives buying something on the internet and biased against housewives who don't have a computer or don't buy things on the internet.
ReplyDelete2.Not all people work out at the good life gym. Biased in favour of people who go to the local good life gym. Biased against people who don't work out at the local good life gym.
3.Police officers aren't the only ones who could've been victims. It could've been someone the dead guy knew. Biased in favour of if the person was a victim. Biased against the person who is not coming from that police station.
1. It is biased in favour of people who live in England and in favour of housewives with Internet access. It is biased against any other person who lives outside of England, not a housewife and a person who does not have Internet access.
ReplyDelete2. It is biased in favour of people who work out a lot at a gym. Not all Canadians work out four times a week. Some Canadians hate working out. It is biased against people who don't like working out at that gym or do not like working out at all.
3. If that person went to the Canadian police station for a specific reason, it might have been because that person was a victim of a violent crime. It is biased in favour of people who got in trouble and went to the police station. It is biased agaisnt people who are good and don't get in trouble with the cops.
All of these examples are biased in some way. It is better to be randomn
1.) It is biased because the only people being questioned are those who are online. People who don't use the internet are not being included.
ReplyDelete2.) It is biased because they are only asking people at a gym. People who don't workout at the local good life gym are not being asked.
3.)It is biased because most people coming out of a police station are there to report a crime.
#1: The results would be biased in favor of the housewives who have access to the Internet in England. Since the question includes how many people buy 'online' it would be biased against the people who do not have Internet access and wouldn't be able to buy anything online anyway. With no Internet you wouldn't be able to participate in an online survey or order online.
ReplyDelete#2: Since this question was asked at a gym, it would be biased in favor of people who probably exercise regularly. If this question was asked to busy workers with really tight schedules, they probably wouldn't be able to work out as frequently as people with free time. It is biased against others who don't work out at the gym.
#3: This question was asked at a police station, and to people coming out of it. Since this questions was asked there, those who have answered might of actually been a victim of a crime, or reported being a witness of one. If this question had been asked somewhere else other than places that report things such as these, the results would vary.
- Results in a survey vary according to where the question has been asked, when it was asked, what was asked, how it's been asked, who it is biased against and in favour of, etc...
-Christine.
3)This survey is biased in favour of the people who were a victim in a crime and biased against anyone who wasn't involved in a crime. Those coming out of a police station will probaly say they have because thats their job.
ReplyDelete1)This survey is biased in favour of those who have internet and biased against those who do not have internet.Poeple who go on the internet a lot will porbably answer that they do most shopping online since they have a computer and the tme.
2)This survey is biased in favour of those who go to the gym and workout and biased against those who don't. People who come out of the gym usually work out at their local gym a lot. So they will say they work out a lot
-dani
1. Question one’s results are biased in favour of housewives that live far from the shopping centers and stores. It would also be biased in favour of England homes that have access to computer and internet. These results would be biased against housewives in England that live close to the shopping centers and malls because they would be close enough to walk instead of order online. The results are also biased against the housewives in England that don’t own a computer or have access to the internet.
ReplyDelete2. Question two’s results are biased in favour of people that live in the local area of the Good Life gym. It is also biased in favour of Canadians that could have a membership for the Good Life Gym, to go to the gym on a regular basis like four times a week. Memberships allow members to workout at the gym as many times as they want. This is also bias in favour of Canadians that enjoy working out at the gym and make it part of their lifestyle. These results are bias against Canadians that don’t workout at a gym or exercise in a gym often. The results are biased against Canadians that don’t have a Good Life Gym in the area so they wouldn’t regularly attend the gym.
3. Question three’s results are biased in favour of people that have had a problem or have been victims in crime and have needed to involve the police. When somebody visits a police station they’re probably reporting a crime that they were a victim of. The results are biased against people that have never visited the police station, and have never been a victim of crime. The people that have never visited a police station wouldn’t be able to provide their input to contribute the survey which has made Canada seem like a very violent place with the results that 7 of 10 Canadians have been a victim of a crime.
To get results that are not biased you have to consider location, the sample, society, race, where the question is asked and who it is asked to. These are very valuable factors when doing a survey.
Christina Z
1. This is biased for people, especially for housewives who live in England. It is biased against people who don’t use the Internet, who are not housewives, and that do not live in England.
ReplyDelete2. This survey is biased for the people who regularly exercise at a local Good life gym. It is biased against people who don’t go to the local Good life gym.
3. This survey is biased for the people who a Canadian victim of crime. It is biased against the people who weren’t coming out of a Canadian police station.