Ask AI: the difference between descriptive and inferential statistics

Descriptive statistics are used to summarize a data set and are a way of describing the data numerically and graphically. Descriptive statistics help to provide an overall picture of the data and show the characteristics of the data. Examples of descriptive statistics include measures of central tendency (mean, median, and mode) and measures of dispersion (variance, standard deviation, interquartile range, and range). Inferential statistics, on the other hand, are used to draw conclusions and make predictions about a population based on a sample. In other words, it is used to infer information about a larger population from a smaller sample. Examples of inferential statistics include hypothesis testing, confidence intervals, and correlations.