To ensure that your results are valid, consider the following guidelines when you collect data, perform the analysis, and interpret your results.
- The data should be continuous
- Continuous data are measurements that may potentially take on any numeric value within a range of values along a continuous scale, including fractional or decimal values. Common examples include measurements such as length, weight, and temperature.
- The sample data should be selected randomly
- In statistics, random samples are used to make generalizations, or inferences, about a population. If your data were not collected randomly, your results may not represent the population.
