The Mann-Whitney U Test

Types of Inferential Statistics

Inferential Statistics: estimate the value of

a population parameter from the

characteristics of a sample
Parametric Statistics:
Assumes the values in a sample

are normally distributed

Interval/Ratio level data required
Nonparametric Statistics:
No assumptions about the underlying
distribution of the sample
Used when the data do not meet the
assumption for a parametric test
(ordinal and nominal data)

Mann Whitney U Test

Nonparametric

equivalent of the
independent t test
Two independent groups
It is used to test

hypotheses in the same

way as the t distribution.

Cont
It was proposed by Mann , Whitney and

Wilcoxon.
The test is usually referred to as the Mannwhitney test Or wilcoxen Mann-whitney test
.

The Wilcoxon-MannWhitney

Also known as the rank sum test

This hypothesis test is also used to

compare two independent samples

This procedure is different from the
independent t test because it is valid even
if the population distributions are not
normal

Cont

WMW is called a distribution-free

type of test or a nonparametric test

Uses of Mann-Whitney U test

Mainly used to analyse the difference

between the medians of two data sets.

You want to know whether two sets of
measurements genuinely differ.

Assumptions for the WMW

Observations are independent
Samples are independent
Interest variable is continuous
Interest variable is measured on at

least an ordinal scale .

Procedure
Four major parts to consider
#1 The hypotheses:
Ho: Mx = My
Ha: Mx My
This could also be directional:
Ho: Mx My Ha: Mx >My
Ho: Mx My Ha: Mx <My

Cont

2) Level of significance
= 0.05
3)The test statistic:
denoted by Us
4) Critical region:
P<
Us< tabulated ,at =5%
then reject Ho
Critical Values are in table

Cont
#4 Conclusion:
Similar to the conclusion of an
independent t test, but not linked to any
parameter (for example the difference
in means)

Mann-Whitney U test
Null hypothesis
The two groups
Have the same
median

Sample

Test statistic
U1 or U2

compare

Null distribution
U with n1, n2

How unusual is this test statistic?

P < 0.05
Reject Ho

P > 0.05
Fail to reject Ho

Step One
Arrange all the observations into a single

ranked series. That is, rank all the

observations without regard to which
sample they are in.
In other words, combine all of the data from
both groups into a single column, in order,
but keep track of what group they came
from.

Step Two
Add up the ranks for the observations

which came from sample 1

Then add up the sum of ranks in sample 2

Step Three
U test

Where:
U=Mann-Whitney U test
N1 = sample size one
N2= Sample size two
Ri = Rank of the sample size

Step Four
The smaller value of U1 and U2 is the one

used when consulting significance tables.

Mann-Whitney U Test
If you have ties:
Rank them anyway, pretending they were

slightly different
Find the average of the ranks for the identical
values, and give them all that rank
Carry on as if all the whole-number ranks
have been used up

Example
Data
14
2
5
14
2
14
18
4

Example
Data
14
2
5
14
2
14
18
4

Sorted
Data
2
2
4
5
14
14
14
18

G1
G2
G2
G1
G1
G2
G1
G2

Example

Sorted
Data

Data
14
2
5
14
2
14
18
4

2
2
4
5
14
14
14
18

G1
G2
G2
G1
G1
G2
G1
G2

TIES

Example

Sorted
Data

Data
14
2
5
14
2
14
18
4

2
2
4
5
14
14
14
18

G1
G2
G2
G1
G1
G2
G1
G2

TIES

Rank them
anyway,
pretending
they were
slightly
different

Example
Data
14
2
5
14
2
14
18
4

Sorted
Data
2
2
4
5
14
14
14
18

G1
G2
G2
G1
G1
G2
G1
G2

Rank A
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

Example
Data
14
2
5
14
2
14
18
4

Sorted
Data
2
2
4
5
14
14
14
18

G1
G2
G2
G1
G1
G2
G1
G2

Rank A
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

Find the
average of the
ranks for the
identical
values, and
give them all
that rank

Example
Data
14
2
5
14
2
14
18
4

Sorted
Data
2
2
4
5
14
14
14
18

G1
G2
G2
G1
G1
G2
G1
G2

Rank A
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

Average = 1.5

Average = 6

Example
Data
14
2
5
4
2
14
18
14

Sorted
Data
2
2
4
5
14
14
14
18

G1
G2
G2
G1
G1
G2
G1
G2

Rank A
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

Rank
1.5
1.5
3
4
6
6
6
8

Example
Data
14
2
5
4
2
14
18
14

Sorted
Data
2
2
4
5
14
14
14
18

G1
G2
G2
G1
G1
G2
G1
G2

Rank A
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

Rank
1.5
1.5
3
4
6
6
6
8

First, sort them back into the two groups,

Then these can now be used for the Mann-Whitney U test

Compare
If the smaller value of U1 or U2 is smaller

than
Tabulated then accept Ho
If p value less then alpha ,then reject Ho.

Computing the Mann Whitney U

Using SPSS
Enter data into SPSS spreadsheet; two

columns 1st column: groups; 2nd column:

scores (ratings)
Analyze Nonparametric 2 Independent
Samples
Select the independent variable and move it
to the Grouping Variable box Click Define
Groups Enter 1 for group 1 and 2 for group
2

Cont
Select the dependent variable and move it

to the Test Variable box Make sure Mann

Whitney is selected Click OK

Interpreting the Output

Ranks
Equal Rights Attitudes

Income Status
Income Producing
No Income
Total

Test Statisticsb

Mann-Whitney U
Wilcoxon W
Z
Asymp. Sig. (2-tailed)
Exact Sig. [2*(1-tailed
Sig.)]

Equal Rights
Attitudes
30.000
85.000
-1.512
.131
a

.143

a. Not corrected for ties.

b. Grouping Variable: Income Status

N
10
10
20

Mean Rank
12.50
8.50

Sum of Ranks
125.00
85.00

The output provides a

z score equivalent of
the Mann Whitney U
statistic.
It also gives
significance levels for
both a one-tailed and
a two-tailed
hypothesis.

Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney vs.
Independent Test
Both try to answer the same question,
but treat data differently.
W-M-W uses rank ordering
Positive: doesnt depend on normality
or population parameters
Negative: distribution free lacks power
because it doesn't use all the info in the
data

Cont
T-test uses actual Y values
Positive : Incorporates all of the data

into calculations
Negative : Must meet normality
assumption

Cont
So
If your data are normally distributed
use the t-test
If your data are not normal use the
WMW test