Question

An article gave data on where students purchased textbooks. The accompanying frequency table summarizes data from a sample of 1152 full-time college students. Where Books Purchased Frequency Campus bookstore (CB) 576 Campus bookstore website (CBW) 48 Online bookstore other than campus bookstore (OOB) 245 Off-campus bookstore (OCB) 165 Rented textbooks (RT) 36 Purchased mostly eBooks (ME) 15 Didn't buy any textbooks (DBT) 67 (b) Write a few sentences commenting on where students are buying textbooks. (Round your answers to one decimal place.) By far the most popular option was to ---Select--- buy from the campus bookstore buy from the campus bookstore website buy from another online bookstore buy from an off-campus bookstore rent textbooks buy mostly eBooks not buy any textbook , which accounted for % of the students. The second most popular option was to ---Select--- buy from the campus bookstore buy from the campus bookstore website buy from another online bookstore buy from an off-campus bookstore rent textbooks buy mostly eBooks not buy any textbook and the third most popular option was to ---Select--- buy from the campus bookstore buy from the campus bookstore website buy from another online bookstore buy from an off-campus bookstore rent textbooks buy mostly eBooks not buy any textbook , with these two options accounting for % of the students. The least popular option was to ---Select--- buy from the campus bookstore buy from the campus bookstore website buy from another online bookstore buy from an off-campus bookstore rent textbooks buy mostly eBooks not buy any textbook , accounting for % of the students.

Answer 1

Most students buy their textbooks from the campus bookstore (50.0%), followed by other online bookstores (21.3%) and off-campus bookstores (14.3%), while buying eBooks is the least popular method (1.3%). While online retailers have a decent market share, it's evident that campus bookstores still dominate, likely due to the certainty and immediacy they provide.

Step-by-step explanation:

By examining the data provided, we see that the most popular option was to buy from the campus bookstore, which accounted for 50.0% of the students. The second most popular option was to buy from another online bookstore, accounting for 21.3% of the students. The third most popular option was to buy from an off-campus bookstore with 14.3% of students choosing this option. The least popular method was to buy mostly eBooks, with only 1.3% of students choosing this option.

It is also interesting to note that despite many online retailers advertising lower prices and availability, more than half the students still prefer purchasing their textbooks from the campus bookstore. This might be due to immediacy and certainty of getting the needed textbooks on time. However, about 21.3% of students did opt for other online bookstores which indicates a potential challenge for campus bookstores and suggests an opportunity for online retailers, given that they can ensure prompt availability of all necessary books.

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