Definitions (cont.

Descriptive Statistics refers to a collection of tools for data representation and summarization.

Inferential Statistics is a body of techniques useful for drawing conclusions about population parameter(s) on the basis of information obtained from a random sample.

Target Population: A collection of all units/subjects under study

Study Population: An accessible subset of a target population. This is a subset of target population from which a sample can be obtained.

Sample: A collection of units drawn from a study population.

Random Sample: A subset of a study population whose elements are drawn using probabilistic scheme.

Parameter: A numerical characteristic of a population. Parameters are usually denoted by Greek letters: population mean, etc.

Statistic: A numerical characteristic of a sample and is usually denoted by Roman letters.

Hypothesis testing is a tool for decision making about a population characteristic on the basis of data obtained from a subset of the population.

Hypothesis: A statement about a parameter of a population.

Null hypothesis and alternate hypothesis are complimentary statements one of which cannot be rejected when testing. The null hypothesis is denoted by H0 and represents a statement that the investigator doubts to be true. The alternative hypothesis denoted by HA (or H1) represents a statement the investigator believes is likely to be true. 1

Hypothesis test is a rule for specifying which sample values are likely to lead to: 1. 2. acceptance of H0 or rejection of H0 and acceptance of HA

Rejection Region/Critical Region This is the subset of a sample space that would lead to the rejection of the null hypothesis (H0). Its complement is acceptance region.

Errors in Hypothesis Testing

When using hypothesis testing for decision making, one of two types of errors are likely to occur. These errors are identified below:

True State Decision arrived Reject H0 Fail to reject H0 H0 Type I Error Correct HA Correct Type II Error

Type I Error: An error committed when a true H0 is rejected. Type II Error: An error committed when a false H0 is accepted. Size of a test/significance level of a test: This is the probability of type I error. It is a measure of Type I Error and represents the maximum risk the investigator is willing to accept and is usually denoted by . In practice, investigators control Type I Error by fixing its size in advance.

Power of a test: The probability that H0 is rejected when HA is true. So far Hypothesis test has been discussed in which , the significance level has been defined as the maximum risk the investigator is willing to accept when a true H0 is rejected in favor of HA.

A statistic used for deciding between the null and alternative hypotheses is referred to as the Test Criterion (TC). This is also referred to as the Test Statistic.

A rejection rule (RR) is a criterion for deciding either to reject or accept the null hypothesis. The rule depends on the

(1) (2) (3)

Significance level; Probability distribution of the test criterion under the null hypothesis. The form of the alternate hypothesis.