Understanding the Principles of Statistical Hypothesis Testing Statistical hypothesis testing provides objective criteria for deciding whether

hypotheses are supported by empirical evidence. Hypothesis  Researchers prediction of the outcome of the research study based on the research variables.  Provides direction for the type of research design and statistical analysis to be used in the study  Because it suggests the study outcomes, it must be stated clearly, concisely and in measurable terms. Considering 3 criteria: 1. Only 1 variable, condition or relationship and only 1 statistical analysis addressed in each hypothesis. 2. The variable, condition or relationship must be testable 3. The aim of the research guides what is included in the hypothesis. Simple hypothesis  Predicts the relationship between 1 independent variable and 1 dependent variable Complex hypothesis  Predicts the relationship between 2 or more independent and dependent variable Null hypothesis  Some designated Ho, is a statement that there will be no difference, no change, or no effect on the dependent variable for the population under study.  Used when the statistical testing procedures are applied to the data. Alternative hypothesis  Is H1 and the opposite of the null  Predicts that the independent variable will make a difference, have an effect, or a change on the dependent variable for the population under study.

Directional hypothesis  Predicts the type of relationship between the variables which in turn specifies the expected direction of the treatment effects  The conceptual framework or theory is used as the basis for the determination of the direction of the relationship between the variable.  Allow for the use of 1-tailed statistical test which is advantageous in that is more sensitive in detecting a treatment effect and statistical significance is more easily achieved. Non directional hypothesis  Predicts only that a relationship does not exist and does not specify the direction of the relationship  Used when research is not theory based, of past research provides conflicting result, or if the direction of the relationship is not known.  The 2-tailed statistical test is a non directional hypothesis test. Statistical hypothesis  The null and alternative hypothesis written in statistical terms  States the research hypothesis quantifiable terms by making a statements about the values of the mean of the population under study Research hypothesis  Makes prediction about outcome of the study and about the relationship between the variables  Written in a narrative format versus using statistics.

Each statistical test described in this chapter has a particular application, but the overall process of testing hypotheses is basically the same. The steps are as follows: 1. Select a test statistic. Offers assistance in selecting appropriate tests. Researchers consider such factors as whether a parametric test is justified, which levels of measurement were used, whether a between-groups test is needed, and how many groups are being compared. 2. Establish the level of significance. Researchers establish the criterion for accepting or rejecting the null hypothesis before analyses are undertaken. A level of .05 is usually acceptable. 3. Select a one-tailed or two-tailed test. In most cases, a two-tailed test should be used, but in some cases a one-tailed test may be warranted. 4. Compute a test statistic. Using collected data, researchers calculate a test statistic using appropriate computational formulas, or instruct a computer to calculate the statistic. 5. Calculate the degrees of freedom (symbolized as df). Degrees of freedom are a concept that refers to the number of observations free to vary about a parameter. The concept is too complex for full elaboration here, but fortunately df is easy to compute. 6. Obtain a tabled value for the statistical test. There are theoretical distributions for all test statistics. These distributions enable researchers to determine whether obtained values of the test statistic are beyond the range of what is probable if the null hypothesis were true. Researchers examine a table for the appropriate test statistic and obtain the critical value corresponding to the degrees of freedom and significance level. 7. Compare the test statistic with the tabled value. In the final step, researchers compare the value in the table with the value of the computed test statistic. If the absolute value of the test statistic is larger than the tabled value, the results are statistically significant. If the computed value is smaller, the results are nonsignificant.