Statistics can be represented using a bar graph or a pie chart.
Statistics is a term that comes from the Latin statisticum collegium ( "council of state" ) and its Italian derivative statista ( "statesman or politician" ). In 1749 , the German Gottfried Achenwall began using the German word statistik to designate the analysis of state data . Therefore, the origins of statistics are related to the government and its administrative bodies.
Today it can be said that the collection and interpretation of data obtained in a study is the task of statistics, considered as a branch of mathematics . Statistics (the result of applying a statistical algorithm to a group of data) allow decision-making within the government sphere, but also in the world of business and commerce.
Statistics tools
In addition to all of the above, we must make it clear that for this branch of mathematics to take place and develop its work, it must have a series of instruments that have become fundamental. Specifically, we refer to the so-called measurement levels (interval, nominal, ratio and ordinal), observational studies and also statistical analysis techniques .
This last group of tools should include some as well-known and important as statistical frequency , analysis of variance , statistical graph , regression analysis , Student's t test or confirmatory factor analysis .
In statistics, the standard deviation is a measure that allows the quantification of the dispersion or variation of a set of data.
Classification according to type
Applied statistics can be divided into two branches: descriptive statistics (refers to the methods of collection, description, visualization and summary of data, which can be presented in numerical or graphic form) and statistical inference (the generation of models). and predictions related to the phenomena studied, taking into account the random aspect and uncertainty in the observations).
In addition to applied statistics, there is also a discipline called mathematical statistics , which covers the theoretical bases of the subject.
Main concepts of statistics
In statistics we work with different concepts. Some of the most important are the following:
- Population : It is the set of individuals who have in common what is intended to be investigated.
- Sample : This is a subset that is obtained from the population and that makes possible an accurate representation of the total set.
- Variable : It is a characteristic of the population or sample to which it is possible to attribute a value. There are random variables, dependent variables and independent variables.
- Experiment : That which is carried out to obtain qualitative data or quantitative data and that allows the refutation or confirmation of a hypothesis .
- Parameters : This is the name given to the measures that provide information about the trend, dispersion and other issues associated with the data set.
Inferential statistics uses induction to establish properties of the sample.
Its importance in sport
Statistics are very important in sports. In basketball , in fact , they are essential.
It is common for basketball players' performance to be determined according to the averages they record in points, rebounds, assists and other items. For example: if a player has an average of 26.8 points per game , his rivals know from that figure that he is the main offensive weapon of his team.
The efficiency of a player from the free throw line or the defensive consistency of a team by analyzing the points it receives are other issues that can be known through statistics, which even help to make predictions: a coach knows that, when his players score 12 or more triples per game, they win 90% of the games. With this in mind, you can anticipate how a game could end based on the three-pointers made before starting the fourth quarter.
The National Institute of Statistics of Spain
When talking about this scientific branch we cannot overlook the fact that in Spain there is what is known as the National Institute of Statistics ( INE ). An organization of great value as it is responsible for undertaking a series of essential functions for the State. According to current legislation, its mission is to carry out, for example, the different demographic and economic censuses .
The electoral census and statistical operations around the national accounts are other works carried out by this organization, which has among its most relevant areas the Department of Planning, Coordination and Statistical Dissemination as well as the Department of Economic Accounts and Employment or the Department of Sampling and Collection. of Data .
All this without forgetting that in Spain there is also an Interministerial Statistics Commission , a Higher Statistics Council and an Interterritorial Statistics Committee .
Methods and practices
Statistical-mathematical methods , for their part, emerged from probability theory , which calculates the frequency with which a result occurs in an experiment under sufficiently stable conditions.
Currently, statistical practices have advanced and have been perfected thanks to the creation of precise instruments that allow the development of public policies.