Case Study: One Sample Z

Case Study Description

You have noticed that a lot of your friends in your location are having a difficult time finding employment. Therefore,
you decide to conduct a study to compare the mean unemployment rate in your area to unemployment rates in
countries throughout the world. You will use the “World Unemployment Rates 1991-2023” dataset for your study.

1. Design the Study

Identify key elements and procedures related to your study design.

1. What is the population for your study?

Population: [Enter your answer here.]

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column “Country Name”will be the collection
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file. to determine if college students tend to drink less than 2.5 liters of water per day. The population for the
study is “all college students”, and the data collected from each college student (i.e. daily water intake) is the
variable of interest.

The first column(s) in a dataset file often give you a clue regarding what the population is.

2. What is the variable of interest for your study? For this study, we will focus on the unemployment rates from
the most recent year (2023) in the dataset file. Select one of the following as your variable of interest: “Overall
Unemployment Rate 2023”, “Female Unemployment Rate 2023”, or “Male Unemployment Rate 2023”.
 Variable of Interest: [Enter your answer here.]

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The remaining
column headings give the possible variables that can be used
for a study.

3. Search the internet or inquire at your local city offices to determine the current unemployment rate for your
location. In the space below, state your location, the source of your information, the value of the
unemployment rate that you found, and whether you think the mean world unemployment rate is “different
than”, “greater than”, or “less than” your local unemployment rate.

Location: [Enter your answer here.]

Source: [Enter your answer here.]

Unemployment Rate for Your Location: [Enter your answer here.]

Type of Comparison (select ONE): different than / greater than / less than

4. Now that you have identified the population (number 1), your variable of interest (number 2), and an existing
value to which you want to compare (number 3), you are ready to write your research question. Use the
following format:

“Is the mean [Variable of Interest] [Type of Comparison] [Unemployment Rate for Your Location]?”

Research Question: [Enter your answer here.]

2. Collect Data
Select a simple random sample from the population and collect the data from that sample.

5. Note down the minimum and maximum row numbers in the dataset file the correspond to the countries.

Minimum Row Number: [Enter your answer here.]

Maximum Row Number: [Enter your answer here.]

6. Select the sample size you will use. For quantitative samples, the sample size should be at least 30. In addition,
the sample size should not be too large. For this case study, select a sample size between 30 and 40 and enter
your chosen sample size below.

Sample Size (n ): [Enter your answer here.]

7. Now you will randomly select your sample. To do this you may use one of the following methods to select n
values between the minimum and maximum row numbers. Then your sample will consist of the countries in the
dataset that correspond to those randomly selected row numbers. If a selected country does not have a value
for your chosen variable, then simply go to the next country in the dataset file that does have a value and
include that country. Alternatively, you could simply select a different random row number.

OPTION 1: Use a website (like Research Randomizer).

OPTION 2: Use the RANDBETWEEN function in Excel. Syntax: “=RANDBETWEEN(minimum, maximum)”

8. In the table below, enter the variable values for the countries that correspond to your randomly selected row
numbers. Replace the word “Heading” in the first row with the name of your chosen unemployment rate
variable (i.e. “Overall Unemployment Rate 2023”, “Female Unemployment Rate 2023”, or “Male Unemployment
Rate 2023”).

[Heading]
3. Describe the Data
Find summary statistics and graphs that describe your sample data.

9. For a “One Sample Z” test, you will first need to find the population standard deviation sigma (σ ). The
population standard deviation for each of the three possible variables is listed below.

SELECT the sigma value for the variable you chose (Choose one):
a. Overall Unemployment Rate 2023 Sigma: 5.044%
b. Female Unemployment Rate 2023 Sigma: 4.929%
c. Male Unemployment Rate 2023 Sigma: 4.617%

10. Now copy and paste your sample data into the “One Sample Z Test” tab in the “Statistics Toolbox”. Then write
down each of the following descriptive statistics.

Sample Mean ( x ): [Enter your answer here.]

 Sample Standard Deviation ( s): [Enter your answer here.]

Minimum: [Enter your answer here.]

Quartile 1 (Q1): [Enter your answer here.]

Quartile 2 (Q2, Median): [Enter your answer here.]

Quartile 3 (Q3): [Enter your answer here.]

Maximum: [Enter your answer here.]

11. Copy and Paste the Histogram and Boxplot for your sample data from the “One Sample Z Test” tab in the
“Statistics Toolbox” into the space below.
[Enter your answer here.]

12. Based on your descriptive statistics above, what do you think the answer to your research question will be?
Justify your response using specific details about the descriptive statistics.
[Enter your answer here.]

4. Make Inferences
Conduct a hypothesis test and find a confidence interval to make inference about your population and answer your
research question.

13. Explain why a “One Sample Z” test is appropriate for this case study. In your explanation, include the type of
data (quantitative or categorical), the number of variables, the number of samples, and whether or not sigma is
known.
[Enter your answer here.]

14. Explain how you know that each of the following requirements for a “One Sample Z” test have been met.

(Requirement 1) A simple random sample was drawn from the population:

[Enter your answer here.]

(Requirement 2) X-bar ( x ) is normally distributed:

[Enter your answer here.]

(Requirement 3) Sigma (σ ) is known:

[Enter your answer here.]

15. State the null and alternative hypotheses. Use the following format:
 “Null Hypothesis: The mean [Variable of Interest] is equal to [Unemployment Rate for Your Location].”

“Alternative Hypothesis: The mean [Variable of Interest] is [Type of Comparison] [Unemployment Rate for Your
Location].”

Null Hypothesis ( H 0): [Enter your answer here.]

Alternative Hypothesis ( H 1): [Enter your answer here.]

16. State the level of significance (α ) that you will use for your hypothesis test. You may choose 0.01, 0.05, or 0.10.

Alpha (α ): [Enter your answer here.]

17. State the test statistic ( z ) and p-value.

a. First, enter the null hypothesis value (the unemployment rate for your location) in the null hypothesis
row of the “Hypothesis Test” table in the “One Sample Z Test” tab in the “Statistics Toolbox”.
b. Then select the appropriate alternative hypothesis.
c. The test statistic and p-value will now appear in the “Hypothesis Test” table.

Test Statistics ( z ): [Enter your answer here.]

P-Value: [Enter your answer here.]

18. Make a statement on rejecting or failing to reject the null hypothesis by comparing the p-value to the level of
significance.
[Enter your answer here.]

19. State your conclusion in terms of the alternative hypothesis.

[Enter your answer here.]

20. State the confidence level that you will use for your confidence interval. You may choose 90%, 95%, or 99%.

Confidence Level: [Enter your answer here.]

21. After entering the correct confidence level in the “Confidence Interval” box in the “One Sample Z Test” tab in the
“Statistics Toolbox”, state the lower and upper bounds of your confidence interval.

Lower Bound: [Enter your answer here.]

Upper Bound: [Enter your answer here.]

22. Interpret your confidence interval. Follow the following format:

“We are [Confidence Level]% confident that the true mean [Variable of Interest] is in the interval from [Lower
Bound] to [Upper Bound].”
 Interpretation: [Enter your answer here.]

23. Compare the confidence interval to the null hypothesis to determine whether the null hypothesis should be
rejected.
[Enter your answer here.]

5. Take Action
Take appropriate actions based on the results of the hypothesis test.

24. What action(s) would you recommend based on the results of your hypothesis test?
[Enter your answer here.]

Tip: There is ALWAYS an action that can be taken based on the results of your hypothesis test. These actions
may involve having a discussion with and making recommendations for change to government, business, or
community leaders or recommending a follow-up research study that will add more clarity or understanding to
your research topic.