Biostatistics Flashcards
Standard Deviation [SD; s]
Shows variability of observations in a data set
What is standard error [SE] of the mean?
The standard deviation of the random sampling distribution of means
SE or SEM; in other words SE shows variability of sample means around the true population mean.
Describe 95% Confidence Interval [CI] of the mean.
Is the range of values for the population mean in which you are 95% sure the true population mean falls within the CI range
Describe 95% Confidence Interval [CI] of the mean.
Is the range of values for the population mean in which you are 95% sure that the true population mean falls within the CI range
List the measures of central location.
Mean [average], Median [middle value], and Mode [most common value]
List the measures of central variation.
Range, Percentiles, Standard Deviation, and Standard Error of the mean.
What is a normal range in frequency distribution?
Mean +/- 2 SD
When is a Independent (non paired) t- test used?
An independent t-test is used when two groups of subjects are sampled on one occasion; e.g. testing the mean difference in body weights of subjects in group A and group B at time 1
When is a dependent (paired) t- test used?
A dependent/paired t-test is used when a group variable of interest is measured on two occasions; e.g. testing the mean difference in body weights of subjects in group A at time 1 and time 2.
What is an element in statistics?
A single observation; denoted by X
The total number of elements in a population are denoted by?
N
The total number of elements in a sample are denoted by?
n
What are probability samples?
Samples in which the researcher can specify the probability of any one element in the population being included.
Probability samples permit the use of what type of statistics?
Inferential statistics
Non-probability samples allow what type of statistics to be used?
Descriptive statistics only
What are the four basic kinds of probability samples?
- simple random samples
- stratified random samples
- cluster samples
- systematic samples
What is a simple random sample?
A sample in which every individual n the population has an equal probability of being included in the sample.
When are clustered samples used?
When drawing a simple random sample or stratified random sample is too expensive or laborious.
How is a cluster sample drawn?
The investigator starts by selecting a random set of clusters, and then selects a subset of sample from each cluster.
The probability of an event is denoted by what?
p
How are probabilities expressed?
Decimal fractions between 0-1
What is the probability of an event “not occurring”?
q = 1-p
What is the addition rule of probability?
The probability of any one of several particular events OCCURRING TOGETHER is equal to the sum of their individual probabilities, provided the events are mutually exclusive
What is a typical medical use of the binomial distribution?
Genetic counseling
List the four scales of measurement.
Nominal, Ordinal, Interval, and Ratio
What are nominal data that fall into only two groups called?
Dichotomous data
Describe nominal scale data.
data can be divided into qualitative categories or groups, but cannot be ordered
Describe ordinal scale data.
data that can be placed in a meaningful order, but lacks information about the size of the interval
What are interval scale data?
Measurements that can be placed in a meaningful order, and have meaningful interval between observations.
What are interval scale data?
Measurements that can be placed in a meaningful order, and have meaningful interval between observations but has no value of absolute zero.
What are ratio scale data?
data with meaningful order, meaningful intervals, and absolute zero.
What are discrete variables?
Variables that can take only certain values and none in between
What are continuous variables?
Variables that may take any value.
What is a centile rank?
represents the percentage of observations that fall below a particular score.
What are quantiles?
divide distributions into a number of equal parts
What is a distribution called when 2 scores both occur with the greatest frequency?
Bimodal distribution
When is a median better measure than mean?
The median is more useful for highly skewed distributions.