What is the most important issue facing the next president? In a January 2016 survey of 1022 adults, the Gallup organization found that Republicans and Democrats agreed on the top four issues, and terrorism was reported as the top challenge by 17 percent of respondents, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points at 95 percent confidence level.
With these results, one may say, "With 95 percent confidence, one can say that between 13 percent and 21 percent of Americans feel that the most important issue facing the next president is terrorism." What "95 percent confidence" means is that:
A) 95 percent of all Americans will say terrorism is the most important issue.
B) one can be certain that between 13 percent and 21 percent of Americans will say terrorism is the most important issue.
C) Gallup obtained the 13 percent to 21 percent range by using a method that would give a range containing the true value for 95 percent of all samples.
D) 95 percent of all educated adults would believe the statement.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

"95 percent confidence" means that if the survey were conducted 100 times using the same method, 95 out of those 100 times, the range obtained from the survey would contain the true value for the entire population. It does not mean that 95 percent of all Americans will say terrorism is the most important issue or that one can be certain about a specific percentage range. Option A and B are incorrect for these reasons. Option D is incorrect as the statement is not about just educated adults, but rather the entire population. Therefore, the best choice is C.

What Is the Most Important Issue Facing the Next President