But Are those Numbers Correct? Some Suggestions for Appraising the Accuracy of Statistics
Knowing whether data are reliable is of fundamental importance to the establishment of knowledge, the formulation of explanatory hypotheses, and the development of effective policy. Yet there appear to be no standard, established tests to enable users to judge whether they should accept a given sta...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Czech Statistical Office
2019-03-01
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| Series: | Statistika: Statistics and Economy Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://www.czso.cz/documents/10180/88506450/32019719q1_049.pdf/756302ad-f736-4f43-b934-b37140d98f02?version=1.0 |
| Summary: | Knowing whether data are reliable is of fundamental importance to the establishment of knowledge, the formulation of explanatory hypotheses, and the development of effective policy. Yet there appear to be no standard, established tests to enable users to judge whether they should accept a given statistic as a fact. Numerous internationally agreed documents set out principles and practices to promote sound statistics, but they offer no direct guidance on whether to accept data as presented. Other documents discuss statistical quality, but focus largely on utilitarian considerations such as availability and timeliness; when they do discuss accuracy, they again consider processes (lists of good practices) rather than results (are the data correct?).
This paper is a plea for, and a first attempt at, identifying some characteristics of data that may be accepted as true. |
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| ISSN: | 0322-788X 1804-8765 |