12. Video: Notation for Parameters vs. Statistics

Notation Parameters vs. Statistics

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There should be a 'hat' on the σ2 \sigma^2 in the statistics side at 0:47 (i.e. σ^2 \hat{\sigma}^2 ).

As you saw in this video, we commonly use Greek symbols as parameters and lowercase letters as the corresponding statistics. Sometimes in the literature, you might also see the same Greek symbols with a "hat" to represent that this is an estimate of the corresponding parameter.

Below is a table that provides some of the most common parameters and corresponding statistics, as shown in the video.

Remember that all parameters pertain to a population, while all statistics pertain to a sample.

Parameter Statistic Description
μ \mu xˉ \bar{x} "The mean of a dataset"
π \pi p p "The mean of a dataset with only 0 and 1 values - a proportion"
μ1μ2 \mu_1 - \mu_2 xˉ1xˉ2 \bar{x}_1-\bar{x}_2 "The difference in means"
π1π2 \pi_1 - \pi_2 p1p2 p_1-p_2 "The difference in proportions"
β \beta b b "A regression coefficient - frequently used with subscripts"
σ \sigma s s "The standard deviation"
σ2 \sigma^2 s2 s^2 "The variance"
ρ \rho r r "The correlation coefficient"