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10.2+Sig+Test+for+Diff+in+Means+Notes

The document discusses the theory and application of significance tests for comparing two means, emphasizing the importance of the sampling distribution's shape, center, and spread. It details the conditions required for conducting a two-sample t-test, including random sampling, normality, and independence. An example involving calcium and blood pressure illustrates the process of hypothesis testing and the interpretation of results, concluding that while there is some evidence of calcium reducing blood pressure, it is not strong enough to reject the null hypothesis.

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10.2+Sig+Test+for+Diff+in+Means+Notes

The document discusses the theory and application of significance tests for comparing two means, emphasizing the importance of the sampling distribution's shape, center, and spread. It details the conditions required for conducting a two-sample t-test, including random sampling, normality, and independence. An example involving calcium and blood pressure illustrates the process of hypothesis testing and the interpretation of results, concluding that while there is some evidence of calcium reducing blood pressure, it is not strong enough to reject the null hypothesis.

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joecalvinhobbes
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© © All Rights Reserved
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Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 15

Section 10.

2
Comparing
Two Means
Theory: The Sampling Distribution of a Difference
Between Two Means
The sampling distribution of a sample mean has the following properties:

Shape Approximately Normal if the population distribution is


Normal or n ≥ 30 (by the central limit theorem).
Center x  

Spread x  if the sample is no more than 10% of the population
n



Theory: The Sampling Distribution of a Difference Between
Two Means
Using software, we generated an SRS of 12 girls and a separate SRS of 8 boys and
calculated the sample mean heights. The difference in sample means was then
calculated and plotted. We repeated this process 1000 times.

What do you notice about the shape, center, and spread


of the sampling distribution of x f  x m ?
Significance Tests for µ 1– µ 2

• An observed difference between two sample means can


reflect an actual difference in the parameters, or it may
just be due to chance variation in random sampling or
random assignment.

• Significance tests help us decide which explanation


makes more sense.

• The null hypothesis has the general form: H0: µ1 = µ2

• The alternative hypothesis says what kind of difference


we expect:
Formula: Significance Tests for µ 1– µ 2

The degrees of freedom is determined by


smaller of n1 - 1 and n2 – 1.
Conditions: Two Mean T- Significance Test
1) Random: Both sets of data should come from a
well-designed random samples or randomized
experiments.
2) Normal: Both sets of data must meet the Central
Limit Theorem* with sample sizes greater than 30 or
graph values that are less than 30 to check normality.
No crazy outliers!
3) Independent: Both sets of data must be
independent. When sampling without replacement, the
sample size n should be no more than 10% of the
population size N (the 10% condition). Must check the
condition for each separate sample.
Using the Two-Sample t Procedures: The Normal Condition
• Sample size less than 15: Use two-sample t
procedures if the data in both samples/groups appear
close to Normal (roughly symmetric, single peak, no
outliers). If the data are clearly skewed or if outliers
are present, do not use t.
• Sample size at least 15: Two-sample t procedures
can be used except in the presence of outliers or
STRONG skewness.
• Large samples: The two-sample t procedures can
be used even for clearly skewed distributions when
both samples/groups are large, roughly n ≥ 30.
Calcium and Blood Pressure
Does increasing the amount of calcium in our diet reduce blood
pressure? Examination of a large sample of people revealed a
relationship between calcium intake and blood pressure. The
relationship was strongest for black men. Such observational studies
do not establish causation. Researchers therefore designed a
randomized comparative experiment. The subjects were 21 healthy
black men who volunteered to take part in the experiment. They
were randomly assigned to two groups: 10 of the men received a
calcium supplement for 12 weeks, while the control group of 11 men
received a placebo pill that looked identical. The experiment was
double-blind. The response variable is the decrease in systolic (top
number) blood pressure for a subject after 12 weeks, in millimeters of
mercury. Data on next slide.
Calcium and Blood Pressure
An increase (which is bad for blood pressure) appears as a negative response.
Parameters & Hypotheses:
H0: µ1 = µ2
Ha: µ1 > µ2

µ1 = the true mean decrease in systolic blood


pressure for healthy black men who take a
calcium supplement
µ2 = the true mean decrease in systolic blood
pressure for healthy black men who take a
placebo.
Assess Conditions:
• Random The 21 subjects were randomly assigned to the
two treatments.
• Normal: Since the sample sizes are less than 15, we must
check and draw graphs.
The boxplots
show no clear
evidence of
skewness and no
outliers,
therefore we can
use t procedures.

• Independent: Due to the random assignment, these two


Name the Test: Two-sample t test for the difference
µ1 – µ2.

Test Statistic: t = 1.634

Obtain p-value: p-value: 0.059348


df= 19 (calculator) or 9 (by hand)
Byhand :
( x1  x2 )  ( 1   2 ) [5.000  ( 0.273)]  0
t  1.604
2 2 2 2
s1 s2 8.743 5.901
 
n1 n2 10 11
Make Decision: Because the P-value, 0.06442,
is greater than α = 0.05, we fail to reject the null
hypothesis.

State Conclusion: The experiment provides


some evidence that calcium reduces blood
pressure, but the evidence is not convincing
enough to conclude that calcium reduces blood
pressure more than a placebo.
Confidence Interval vs. Significance Test
To get results that are consistent with the one-tailed test at
α = 0.05 from the example, we’ll use a 90% confidence level.

We are 90% confident that the interval from -0.4766 to


11.022 captures the difference in true mean blood
pressure reduction on calcium over a placebo. Because the
90% confidence interval includes 0 as a plausible value for
the difference, we fail to reject the null hypothesis.

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