z-intervals and z-tests for population proportions

Definition

Z-intervals and z-tests for population proportions are statistical methods used to make inferences about population proportions based on sample data using normal distribution theory.

Analogy

Imagine you want to know what percentage of students in your school prefer pizza over burgers. You can randomly survey some students and use their responses to estimate the proportion for all students. Z-intervals and z-tests are like tools that help you calculate how confident you can be in your estimation.

Related terms

Margin of Error: The maximum likely difference between an estimated value and its true value.

Sample Proportion: The proportion obtained from a sample that represents an unknown population proportion.

Hypothesis Testing: A process where we make assumptions about a population parameter and then use sample data to evaluate those assumptions.