Final answer:
A confidence interval is an interval estimate used in statistics to provide a range within which the true value of a population parameter is likely to lie. It represents a level of confidence in the estimate based on the sample data.
Step-by-step explanation:
A confidence interval is an interval estimate for an unknown population parameter. It is used in statistics to provide a range within which the true value of the population parameter is likely to lie. The interval is calculated based on the sample data and the desired level of confidence.
For example, if we have a 95 percent confidence interval for the population mean, it means that we are 95 percent confident that the true population mean falls within that interval. The confidence interval consists of a point estimate plus or minus the margin of error, which depends on the confidence level and the standard error of the mean.
So, in general, a confidence interval represents a range of values within which we expect the true population parameter to be with a certain level of confidence.