eli5-sample means and proportions

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what is the difference between a sample mean and a sample proportion?

In: Mathematics

2 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

Think of a mean as a continuous value but proportion as a binary or discreet one.

sample mean is you polling 1,000 people and getting their mean age, or mean income, it’s an average number based on everyone in the sample.

a sample proportion is a count. Same 1,000 people but now you ask who is a Biden voter, or who holds a Master’s degree. It’s not an average or mean, its just a count or percentage. You can then get a mean of the proportions from different samples to increase confidence and reduce error.

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