Statistical inference

Statistical inference is the process of using data analysis to deduce

properties of an underlying probability distribution. Inferential
statistical analysis infers properties of a population, for example by
testing hypotheses and deriving estimates.

Statistics
Statistics is a branch of mathematics working with data collection,
organization, analysis, interpretation and presentation. In applying
statistics to a scientific, industrial, or social problem, it is
conventional to begin with a statistical population or a statistical
model to be studied.

Characteristics of Statistics
Some of the important characteristics of statistics are given below:
 Statistics are aggregates of facts.
 Statistics are numerically expressed.
 Statistics are affected to a marked extent by multiplicity of
causes.
 Statistics are enumerated or estimated according to a
reasonable standard of accuracy.
 Statistics are collected for a predetermined purpose.
 Statistics are collected in a systemic manner.
 Statistics must be comparable to each other
 Scope of Statistics
Statistics is indispensable in this modern age aptly termed as
"the age of planning". The governments of most countries
around the world are constantly researching to improve its
economic development. Statistical data and techniques of
statistical analysis are immensely useful in solving economical
problems such as wages, price, time series analysis, demand
analysis. It is an irreplacable tool of production control. Business
executives are relying more and more on statistical techniques
for studying the prefernce of the customers. Industry statistics
are widely used in equality control. In production engineering,
statistical tools such as inspection plan, control chart etc. are
extensively used to find out whether the product is confirming to
the specifications or not. Statistics are useful to banker,
insurance companies, social workers, labour unions, trade
associations, chambers and to the politicians.

Division of Statistics
Statistics is the science of making decisions in the face of
uncertainty. The study of statistics provides a background for
understanding numerical data and the process of making
inferences from such data.
Statistics is an invaluable tool for all scientific disciplines as well as
being a significant independent mathematical discipline in its own
right.
The Division of Statistics oversees the undergraduate statistics
instructional programs. The Department of Biostatistics provides
students with a calculus-based foundation in probability and
statistics before branching into numerous areas of application.
Statistical Investigation
Statistical investigation is part of an information gathering and learning
process which is undertaken to seek meaning from and to learn more about
observed phenomena as well as to inform decisions and actions. The
ultimate goal of statistical investigation is to learn more about a real world
situation and to expand the body of contextual knowledge.

Stages of Statistics
 Collecting Data
The collection of statistical data is one of the most important
aspects of a statistical inquiry. In this stage, you collect relevant
data from multiple sources – both primary and secondary in nature.
The source is primary if the data (either published or unpublished)
is originally collected by an investigator or an agency.
On the other hand, the source is secondary if the data (published
or unpublished) is taken from an agency or a person who have
already used the data for their statistical requirements. It is also
important to note that the difference between primary and
secondary data is a matter of degree alone.
 Organizing and Presenting Numerical Data
While conducting a statistical inquiry, the second important stage
is the collection and presentation of numerical data. When you
collect data, the secondary source usually provides it in an
organized form. However, data from the primary source is “raw”
and unorganized.
Therefore, you need to edit, classify, and tabulate the data in order
to organize it. Editing data involves the removal of omissions,
inaccuracies, and inconsistencies present in the data.
Further, classifying data involves bringing together the data items
which have common characteristics. Subsequently, you put the
data in a tabular format and present it well. The presentation is
either in the form of a chart, diagram, graph, etc.
 Analyzing the Numerical Data
Once the data is collected, organized, and presented, it is important
to analyze the numerical data in order to get a better understanding
of the subject matter. You can use some popular measures to
analyze numerical data like:
 Averages or measures of the central tendency
 Dispersion
 Correlation
 Skewness
 Regression
 Association and Attributes
 Interpolation and Extrapolation, etc.
Further, in order to simplify the data, you can use probability and
distribution, sampling, index numbers, variance analysis, and time
series.
 Interpreting the Numerical Data
Once you have analyzed the numerical data, you must draw
conclusions and inferences from it. This is the interpretation of
numerical data.
It is a sensitive and difficult task requiring a high degree of skill,
experience, common sense, and also a sense of balanced
judgment of the investigator.
Further, if the investigator misinterprets the data, then he might
draw conclusions which lead to a waste of time and resources. This
can eventually defeat the purpose of the statistical inquiry.
Types Of Statics
Statistical methods can be used to summarize or describe a
collection of data; this is called descriptive statistics. This is useful
in research, when communicating the results of experiments.
There are two types of statistics
1. Descriptive Statistics
2. Inferential Statistics

1. Descriptive statistics
For many people, statistics means numbers—numerical facts,
figures, or information. Reports of industry production, baseball
batting averages, government deficits, and so forth, are often
called statistics. To be precise, these numbers are descriptive
statistics because they are numerical data that describe
phenomena. Descriptive statistics are as simple as the number of
children in each family along a city block or as complex as the
annual report released from the U.S. Treasury Department.
Consider two ways of representing descriptive statistics:
numerical and pictorial.
Numerical statistics
Numerical statistics are numbers, but clearly, some numbers are
more meaningful than others. For example, if you are offered a
purchase price of $1 for an automobile on the condition that you
also buy a second automobile, the price of the second automobile
would be a major consideration (its price could be $1,000,000 or
only $1,000), and thus, the average—or mean—of the two prices
would be the important statistic.
Pictorial statistics
Taking numerical data and presenting it in pictures or graphs is
what is known as pictorial statistics. Showing data in the form of a
graphic can make complex and confusing information appear
more simple and straightforward.

2. Inferential Statistics
Inferential statistics is a decision, estimate, prediction, or
generalization about a population, based on sample.
A population is a collection of all possible individual, objects, or
measurements of interest.
Kinds Of Data
 Introduction to Data Types.
 Categorical Data (Nominal, Ordinal)
 Numerical Data (Discrete, Continuous, Interval, Ratio)
 Why Data Types are important?
 Statistical Methods.
 Summary.

Sources of Data
There are two sources of data in Statistics. Statistical sources
refer to data that are collected for some official purposes and
include censuses and officially conducted surveys. Non-
statistical sources refer to the data that are collected for other
administrative purposes or for the private sector.
 Statistical Survey
A statistical Survey is normally conducted using a sample. It is
also called Sample Survey. It is the method of collecting sample
data and analyzing it using statistical methods. This is done to
make estimations about population characteristics. The
advantage is that it gives you full control over the data. Y
ou can ask questions suited to the study you are carrying out. But,
the disadvantage is that there is a chance of sample error
creeping up. This is because a sample is chosen and the entire
population is not studied. Leaving out some units of the
population while choosing the sample causes this error to arise.

Methods of Data Collection

 Interviews.
 Questionnaires and Surveys.
 Observations.
 Focus Groups.
 Ethnographies, Oral History, and Case Studies.
 Documents and Records.
 Presentation
(Business Statistics)
Submitted To: Sir Bilal
Submitted By: Uzma Qamar
Samina Batool
Hira Razzaq
Athar Abbas
FEDERAL URDU UNIVERSITY OR ARTS,
SIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
ISLAMABAD CAMPUS