Yes, the SEM is an intermediate on the way to calculating a confidence interval.
The 95%CI of a population is the mean +/- 1.96x SEM. The confidence interval is much more useful as a metric that SEM, so I strongly encourage its use.
Standard deviation is a descriptive tool that indicates the dispersion of a sample, Standard Error and confidence intervals are inferential tools, which measure the precision of estimates of population parameters.
On we go. Let’s look at Z scores, but first a definition:
Z scores describe the number of standard deviations a data point is from the mean. So, a Z = 1 is 1SD above the mean and Z = -2 is 2SD below the mean
What inherent problems in data reporting could using Z scores “fix”?
LaNts and Laminins 