Inductive reasoning
Inductive generalization

A generalization (more accurately, an inductive generalization) proceeds from premises about a sample to a conclusion about the population. The observation obtained from this sample is projected onto the broader population.

For example, if there are 20 balls—either black or white—in an urn, to estimate their respective numbers, a sample of four balls is drawn, three are black and one is white. An inductive generalization is that there are 15 black and five white balls in the urn.

How much the premises support the conclusion depends upon the number in the sample group, the number in the population, and the degree to which the sample represents the population (which, for a static population, may be achieved by taking a random sample). The greater the sample size relative to the population and the more closely the sample represents the population, the stronger the generalization is. The hasty generalization and the biased sample are generalization fallacies.
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