|
The ecological fallacy is a widely recognised error in the interpretation of statistical data, whereby inferences about the nature of individuals are based solely upon aggregate statistics collected for the group to which those individuals belong. This fallacy assumes that all members of a group exhibit characteristics of the group at large. Stereotypes are one form of ecological fallacy.
Example: A study is done that shows people from Springfield score higher on the SATs, on average, than people from North Haverbrook. Assuming that an individual from Springfield scored higher on the SATs than an individual from North Haverbrook is an ecological fallacy. Since the SAT scores given in the study were an average, it is indeed possible that the individual from Springfield scored in the bottom ten percent on the SATs and the individual from North Haverbrook just happened to score in the top 10%.
See also
|
