Final answer:
The symbol for the population standard deviation is the Greek letter σ (sigma), while the symbol for the sample standard deviation is s. The standard deviation is the square root of the variance, which is represented as σ² for a population and s² for a sample.
Step-by-step explanation:
The symbol that represents the population standard deviation is the Greek letter σ (sigma). This is distinct from the symbol that represents the sample standard deviation, which is s. When calculating the standard deviation, the variance must be determined first. The population variance is symbolized as σ², and the population standard deviation is the square root of this variance. However, for a sample, the variance is symbolized as s², and the sample standard deviation s is the square root of the sample variance. In the context of probability distributions, the standard deviation of a probability distribution is also symbolized as σ, and it is calculated from the variance σ² of the distribution.