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Psy 230 Independent Samples T-Test: Figure 10-3 (P. 314)

a) Increasing the alpha level from .01 to .05 increases the power. Power is the probability of correctly rejecting the null hypothesis when it is false. A higher alpha level means a wider range of results will lead to rejecting the null, so power increases. b) Increasing the alpha level from .01 to .05 increases the risk of a Type I error, which is rejecting the null hypothesis when it is actually true. A higher alpha level means a wider range of results will lead to rejecting the null, even when it should not be rejected, so the risk of a Type I error increases.

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92 views5 pages

Psy 230 Independent Samples T-Test: Figure 10-3 (P. 314)

a) Increasing the alpha level from .01 to .05 increases the power. Power is the probability of correctly rejecting the null hypothesis when it is false. A higher alpha level means a wider range of results will lead to rejecting the null, so power increases. b) Increasing the alpha level from .01 to .05 increases the risk of a Type I error, which is rejecting the null hypothesis when it is actually true. A higher alpha level means a wider range of results will lead to rejecting the null, even when it should not be rejected, so the risk of a Type I error increases.

Uploaded by

bairmilan
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Psy 230

Independent Samples t-test

I. Independent Samples

Figure 10-3 (p. 314)


Two population distributions. The scores in population I vary from 50 to 70 (a 20-point spread). The scores in
population II range from 20 to 30 (a 10-point spread). If you select one score from each of these two populations, the
closest two values are X1 = 50 and X2 = 30. The two values that are farthest apart are X1 = 70 and X2 = 20.

A. Two Sources of Variability (error)

- each of the two samples will have some error as M represents 

- would be nice to simply add and then average the estimated standard errors
from each sample

- can't (unless samples are the same size)

- Pooled Variance --allows the bigger sample to carry more weight in determining the final
value
B. The formula

(𝑀1−𝑀2 )−(𝜇1−𝜇2 )
𝑡= where
𝑆(𝑀1 −𝑀2 )

𝑠𝑝2 𝑠𝑝2
𝑆(𝑀1 − 𝑀2 ) = √𝑛 + 𝑛
1 2

C. Degrees of Freedom

df = df1 + df2

= (n1 - 1) + (n2 - 1)

D. Assumptions

1. observations in each sample are independent

2. underlying populations are normal

3. the two populations being compared have equal variances (homogeneity of variance)

II. Single Sample vs. Two Independent Samples


A developmental psychologist would like to examine the difference in verbal skills for 10-year-old boys vs.
10-year-old girls. A sample of 10 boys and 10 girls is obtained and each child is given a standardized verbal
abilities test. Do these data indicate a significant difference in verbal skills for boys compared to girls? Use
two-tailed test and set alpha = .05.

Girls
M = 37
SS = 150
n = 10

Boys
M = 31
SS = 210
n = 10

III. Variability and Effect Size


D. Effect Size
Important limitation of the hypothesis testing procedure:
It makes a relative comparison: the size of the treatment effect relative to the difference expected by chance.
If the standard error is very small, then the treatment effect can also be very small and still be bigger than
chance.
Therefore, a significant effect does not necessarily mean a big effect.
Also, if the sample size is large enough, any treatment effect, no matter how small, can be enough for us to
reject the null hypothesis.

Figure 8-11 The appearance of a 15-point treatment effect in two different situations. In part (a), the standard deviation is σ = 100
and the 15-point effect is relatively small. In part (b), the standard deviation is σ = 15 and the 15-point effect is relatively large.
Cohen’s d uses the standard deviation to help measure effect size.
Calculating effect size:
Cohen's d = mean difference / standard deviation
d Evaluation
0.2 Small effect
0.5 Medium effect
0.8 Large effect
1.10 Very Large
1.40 Extremely Large
***************************************************************
Alternative effect size for t-tests: r2
r2 = t2 / (t2 + df)
Advantage to this one is that people are familiar with it.
Values range from 0.00 to 1.00.
What proportion of the total variability in the scores is accounted for by the treatment?
Magnitude of r2 Evaluation
.09 and below Small effect
between .09&.25 Medium effect
over .25 Large effect
The Relationship between Power and Effect Size

Think about the following:


Suppose that a researcher normally uses an alpha level of .01 for hypothesis tests, but this time uses an alpha
level of .05.
a) What does this change in alpha level do to the amount of power?
b) What does this change in alpha do to the risk of a Type I error?

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