Question

Professor Whyte was studying the arrest rates for drunken driving in urban and rural areas of Ohio. It was found that the arrest rate was higher in the rural areas. Professor Whyte concluded that people who live in rural areas are more likely to drive while intoxicated than are people who live in urban areas. Professor Whyte’s conclusion:___________.

Answer 1

Answer:

illustrates the ecological fallacy

Explanation:

An ecological fallacy refers to a fallacy or error in an ecological study's analysis of statistical data, where inferences about the existence of particular individuals are founded primarily on aggregate data obtained for the community to which those people belong. William S. Robinson initially articulated the term in a paper published in the American Sociological Review in 1950. As per the question, Professor Whyte concluded his study based on the sample of average data for arrest in rural areas and therefore, his study is subjected to ecological fallacy.