Sampling Distributions and
Hypothesis Testing
Concepts to remember
Sample statistics: Here I refer to mainly the mean (X) and standard
deviation ( S ) computed on a sample
Population statistics: Mainly the mean (m) and standard deviation (s) of
a population
N: The number of observations in a sample
Conditional probability: The probability of an event occurring given that
some other event has occurred.
Sampling error: Variability of a statistic from sample to sample due to chance.
Hypothesis testing: A process by which decisions are made concerning the
value of parameters.
Sampling distributions: The variability of a statistic over repeated sampling
from a specified population.
Standard error: The standard deviation of a sampling distribution.
Sampling distribution of the mean: The distribution of sample means over
repeated sampling from one population.
Research hypothesis: The hypothesis that the experiment was designed to
investigate.
Sample statistics: Statistics calculated from a sample and used primarily to
describe a sample.
Sampling Distributions and Hypothesis Testing 1
Test statistics: The results of a statistical test.
Decision making: A procedure for making logical decisions on the basis of
sample data.
Rejection level (significance level): The probability with which we are willing to
reject H0 when it is, in fact, correct.
Rejection region: The set of outcomes of an experiment that will lead to
rejection of H0.
Inferential Statistics
Why?
The population of interest is usually very large.
It is beneficial to know what is common: what the majority is into
It is efficient and convenient if we can infer information for a sample
survey; sample, census; population
Statistics; Sample, Population; Parameter
Hypothesis Testing is a process by which decisions are made concerning the
value of parameters.
Null hypothesis (H0): The statistical hypothesis tested by the statistical
procedure; usually a hypothesis of no difference or no relationship; is always
assumed.
Alternative hypothesis (H1): The hypothesis that is adopted when H0 is
rejected; usually the same as the research hypothesis;
Population Mu = Sample Mean
Population Mu is not equal to the Sample Mean
Sampling Distributions and Hypothesis Testing 2
0.5 - 1.645 ; area above the score is determined as the area of rejection;
meanwhile, the area below is determined as the area of acceptance.
One-sample z-test is to determine of the particular sample part of the
population; and to see if there is a difference between the sample and the
population.
z = mean - mu / standard error of the mean
Assumptions of one-sample z-test:
1. The DV was measured on an interval or ratio scale, not nominal or ordinal
2. The sample was drawn randomly
3. The variable of interest is normally distributed
Type I Error is when rejecting the null hypothesis when it is true
Type II Error is when accepting the null hypothesis when it is false
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