1.10.E—Justify the appropriateness of generalizations for a statistical study

Justify the appropriateness of generalizations for a statistical study.

• A sample is considered random when all observational units in the sample are selected from the population using some type of random mechanism, such as a random number generator.
• When observational units, or experimental units, in a sample are randomly selected from a population, it is appropriate to make generalizations about the entire population of individuals from which the sample was selected.
• A sample is not randomly selected when observational units are deliberately chosen or volunteer themselves to be in the sample.
• When observational units, or experimental units, in a sample are not randomly selected from a population, it is appropriate to make generalizations only about a population of individuals that are similar to those used in the study.