A cell phone company wants to know the average total length of time teenagers spend on their phone each day

A cell phone company wants to know the average total length of time teenagers spend on their phone each day.

The correct answer and explanation is:

To calculate the average total length of time teenagers spend on their phones each day, the company would typically gather data from a representative sample of teenagers. Here’s the general approach:

1. Data Collection: The company would need to collect data from a sample of teenagers, ensuring the sample is diverse in terms of gender, age, socioeconomic status, and other relevant factors. This could involve surveys, interviews, or analyzing phone usage data through apps or mobile carriers.
2. Sample Size: The sample size is important because a larger sample reduces the margin of error and provides a more accurate estimate of the average time spent on phones. The company might select a sample of, for example, 1,000 teenagers to ensure that the data reflects the broader population.
3. Data Analysis: Once the data is collected, the company can calculate the average by adding up the total number of minutes or hours spent on the phone by all teenagers in the sample and dividing that by the number of teenagers surveyed. For example, if 1,000 teenagers spend a total of 50,000 hours on their phones over a given period, the average would be 50,000 hours divided by 1,000, which gives 50 hours per teenager.
4. Statistical Tools: To ensure the results are meaningful, the company may use statistical tools to account for outliers (extremely high or low values) and adjust for biases in the sample. For example, they may perform a weighted average if certain groups (such as teenagers from urban areas) are overrepresented in the sample.
5. Reporting Results: After calculating the average time, the company can analyze whether certain factors influence phone usage, such as the type of phone, access to social media, or age. They may also present the findings with confidence intervals to show how precise the estimate is.

By following this method, the company can derive an accurate estimate of the average time teenagers spend on their phones daily.