PHILOSOPHY OF STATISTICS.

Abstract

Error statistics, as we are using that term, has a dual dimension involving philosophy and methodology. It refers to a standpoint regarding both: 1. a cluster of statistical tools, their interpretation and justification, 2. a general philosophy of science, and the roles probability plays in inductive inference. To adequately appraise the error statistical approach, and compare it to other philosophies of statistics, requires understanding the complex interconnections between the methodological and philosophical dimensions in (1) and (2) respectively. To make this entry useful while keeping to a manageable length, we restrict our main focus to (1) the error statistical philosophy. We will however aim to bring out enough of the interplay between the philosophical, methodological, and statistical issues, to elucidate long-standing conceptual, technical, and epistemological debates surrounding both these dimensions. Even with this restriction, we are identifying a huge territory marked by generations of recurring controversy about how to specify and interpret statistical methods. Understandably, standard explications