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• How to Write a Strong Hypothesis | Guide & Examples

How to Write a Strong Hypothesis | Guide & Examples

Published on 6 May 2022 by Shona McCombes .

A hypothesis is a statement that can be tested by scientific research. If you want to test a relationship between two or more variables, you need to write hypotheses before you start your experiment or data collection.

Table of contents

What is a hypothesis, developing a hypothesis (with example), hypothesis examples, frequently asked questions about writing hypotheses.

A hypothesis states your predictions about what your research will find. It is a tentative answer to your research question that has not yet been tested. For some research projects, you might have to write several hypotheses that address different aspects of your research question.

A hypothesis is not just a guess – it should be based on existing theories and knowledge. It also has to be testable, which means you can support or refute it through scientific research methods (such as experiments, observations, and statistical analysis of data).

Variables in hypotheses

Hypotheses propose a relationship between two or more variables . An independent variable is something the researcher changes or controls. A dependent variable is something the researcher observes and measures.

In this example, the independent variable is exposure to the sun – the assumed cause . The dependent variable is the level of happiness – the assumed effect .

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Step 1: ask a question.

Writing a hypothesis begins with a research question that you want to answer. The question should be focused, specific, and researchable within the constraints of your project.

Step 2: Do some preliminary research

Your initial answer to the question should be based on what is already known about the topic. Look for theories and previous studies to help you form educated assumptions about what your research will find.

At this stage, you might construct a conceptual framework to identify which variables you will study and what you think the relationships are between them. Sometimes, you’ll have to operationalise more complex constructs.

Step 3: Formulate your hypothesis

Now you should have some idea of what you expect to find. Write your initial answer to the question in a clear, concise sentence.

Step 4: Refine your hypothesis

You need to make sure your hypothesis is specific and testable. There are various ways of phrasing a hypothesis, but all the terms you use should have clear definitions, and the hypothesis should contain:

• The relevant variables
• The specific group being studied
• The predicted outcome of the experiment or analysis

Step 5: Phrase your hypothesis in three ways

To identify the variables, you can write a simple prediction in if … then form. The first part of the sentence states the independent variable and the second part states the dependent variable.

In academic research, hypotheses are more commonly phrased in terms of correlations or effects, where you directly state the predicted relationship between variables.

If you are comparing two groups, the hypothesis can state what difference you expect to find between them.

Step 6. Write a null hypothesis

If your research involves statistical hypothesis testing , you will also have to write a null hypothesis. The null hypothesis is the default position that there is no association between the variables. The null hypothesis is written as H 0 , while the alternative hypothesis is H 1 or H a .

Hypothesis testing is a formal procedure for investigating our ideas about the world using statistics. It is used by scientists to test specific predictions, called hypotheses , by calculating how likely it is that a pattern or relationship between variables could have arisen by chance.

A hypothesis is not just a guess. It should be based on existing theories and knowledge. It also has to be testable, which means you can support or refute it through scientific research methods (such as experiments, observations, and statistical analysis of data).

A research hypothesis is your proposed answer to your research question. The research hypothesis usually includes an explanation (‘ x affects y because …’).

A statistical hypothesis, on the other hand, is a mathematical statement about a population parameter. Statistical hypotheses always come in pairs: the null and alternative hypotheses. In a well-designed study , the statistical hypotheses correspond logically to the research hypothesis.

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The Craft of Writing a Strong Hypothesis

Table of Contents

Writing a hypothesis is one of the essential elements of a scientific research paper. It needs to be to the point, clearly communicating what your research is trying to accomplish. A blurry, drawn-out, or complexly-structured hypothesis can confuse your readers. Or worse, the editor and peer reviewers.

A captivating hypothesis is not too intricate. This blog will take you through the process so that, by the end of it, you have a better idea of how to convey your research paper's intent in just one sentence.

What is a Hypothesis?

The first step in your scientific endeavor, a hypothesis, is a strong, concise statement that forms the basis of your research. It is not the same as a thesis statement , which is a brief summary of your research paper .

The sole purpose of a hypothesis is to predict your paper's findings, data, and conclusion. It comes from a place of curiosity and intuition . When you write a hypothesis, you're essentially making an educated guess based on scientific prejudices and evidence, which is further proven or disproven through the scientific method.

The reason for undertaking research is to observe a specific phenomenon. A hypothesis, therefore, lays out what the said phenomenon is. And it does so through two variables, an independent and dependent variable.

The independent variable is the cause behind the observation, while the dependent variable is the effect of the cause. A good example of this is “mixing red and blue forms purple.” In this hypothesis, mixing red and blue is the independent variable as you're combining the two colors at your own will. The formation of purple is the dependent variable as, in this case, it is conditional to the independent variable.

Different Types of Hypotheses‌

Types of hypotheses

Some would stand by the notion that there are only two types of hypotheses: a Null hypothesis and an Alternative hypothesis. While that may have some truth to it, it would be better to fully distinguish the most common forms as these terms come up so often, which might leave you out of context.

Apart from Null and Alternative, there are Complex, Simple, Directional, Non-Directional, Statistical, and Associative and casual hypotheses. They don't necessarily have to be exclusive, as one hypothesis can tick many boxes, but knowing the distinctions between them will make it easier for you to construct your own.

1. Null hypothesis

A null hypothesis proposes no relationship between two variables. Denoted by H 0 , it is a negative statement like “Attending physiotherapy sessions does not affect athletes' on-field performance.” Here, the author claims physiotherapy sessions have no effect on on-field performances. Even if there is, it's only a coincidence.

2. Alternative hypothesis

Considered to be the opposite of a null hypothesis, an alternative hypothesis is donated as H1 or Ha. It explicitly states that the dependent variable affects the independent variable. A good  alternative hypothesis example is “Attending physiotherapy sessions improves athletes' on-field performance.” or “Water evaporates at 100 °C. ” The alternative hypothesis further branches into directional and non-directional.

• Directional hypothesis: A hypothesis that states the result would be either positive or negative is called directional hypothesis. It accompanies H1 with either the ‘<' or ‘>' sign.
• Non-directional hypothesis: A non-directional hypothesis only claims an effect on the dependent variable. It does not clarify whether the result would be positive or negative. The sign for a non-directional hypothesis is ‘≠.'

3. Simple hypothesis

A simple hypothesis is a statement made to reflect the relation between exactly two variables. One independent and one dependent. Consider the example, “Smoking is a prominent cause of lung cancer." The dependent variable, lung cancer, is dependent on the independent variable, smoking.

4. Complex hypothesis

In contrast to a simple hypothesis, a complex hypothesis implies the relationship between multiple independent and dependent variables. For instance, “Individuals who eat more fruits tend to have higher immunity, lesser cholesterol, and high metabolism.” The independent variable is eating more fruits, while the dependent variables are higher immunity, lesser cholesterol, and high metabolism.

5. Associative and casual hypothesis

Associative and casual hypotheses don't exhibit how many variables there will be. They define the relationship between the variables. In an associative hypothesis, changing any one variable, dependent or independent, affects others. In a casual hypothesis, the independent variable directly affects the dependent.

6. Empirical hypothesis

Also referred to as the working hypothesis, an empirical hypothesis claims a theory's validation via experiments and observation. This way, the statement appears justifiable and different from a wild guess.

Say, the hypothesis is “Women who take iron tablets face a lesser risk of anemia than those who take vitamin B12.” This is an example of an empirical hypothesis where the researcher  the statement after assessing a group of women who take iron tablets and charting the findings.

7. Statistical hypothesis

The point of a statistical hypothesis is to test an already existing hypothesis by studying a population sample. Hypothesis like “44% of the Indian population belong in the age group of 22-27.” leverage evidence to prove or disprove a particular statement.

Characteristics of a Good Hypothesis

Writing a hypothesis is essential as it can make or break your research for you. That includes your chances of getting published in a journal. So when you're designing one, keep an eye out for these pointers:

• A research hypothesis has to be simple yet clear to look justifiable enough.
• It has to be testable — your research would be rendered pointless if too far-fetched into reality or limited by technology.
• It has to be precise about the results —what you are trying to do and achieve through it should come out in your hypothesis.
• A research hypothesis should be self-explanatory, leaving no doubt in the reader's mind.
• If you are developing a relational hypothesis, you need to include the variables and establish an appropriate relationship among them.
• A hypothesis must keep and reflect the scope for further investigations and experiments.

Separating a Hypothesis from a Prediction

Outside of academia, hypothesis and prediction are often used interchangeably. In research writing, this is not only confusing but also incorrect. And although a hypothesis and prediction are guesses at their core, there are many differences between them.

A hypothesis is an educated guess or even a testable prediction validated through research. It aims to analyze the gathered evidence and facts to define a relationship between variables and put forth a logical explanation behind the nature of events.

Predictions are assumptions or expected outcomes made without any backing evidence. They are more fictionally inclined regardless of where they originate from.

For this reason, a hypothesis holds much more weight than a prediction. It sticks to the scientific method rather than pure guesswork. "Planets revolve around the Sun." is an example of a hypothesis as it is previous knowledge and observed trends. Additionally, we can test it through the scientific method.

Whereas "COVID-19 will be eradicated by 2030." is a prediction. Even though it results from past trends, we can't prove or disprove it. So, the only way this gets validated is to wait and watch if COVID-19 cases end by 2030.

Finally, How to Write a Hypothesis

Quick tips on writing a hypothesis

1.  Be clear about your research question

A hypothesis should instantly address the research question or the problem statement. To do so, you need to ask a question. Understand the constraints of your undertaken research topic and then formulate a simple and topic-centric problem. Only after that can you develop a hypothesis and further test for evidence.

2. Carry out a recce

Once you have your research's foundation laid out, it would be best to conduct preliminary research. Go through previous theories, academic papers, data, and experiments before you start curating your research hypothesis. It will give you an idea of your hypothesis's viability or originality.

Making use of references from relevant research papers helps draft a good research hypothesis. SciSpace Discover offers a repository of over 270 million research papers to browse through and gain a deeper understanding of related studies on a particular topic. Additionally, you can use SciSpace Copilot , your AI research assistant, for reading any lengthy research paper and getting a more summarized context of it. A hypothesis can be formed after evaluating many such summarized research papers. Copilot also offers explanations for theories and equations, explains paper in simplified version, allows you to highlight any text in the paper or clip math equations and tables and provides a deeper, clear understanding of what is being said. This can improve the hypothesis by helping you identify potential research gaps.

3. Create a 3-dimensional hypothesis

Variables are an essential part of any reasonable hypothesis. So, identify your independent and dependent variable(s) and form a correlation between them. The ideal way to do this is to write the hypothetical assumption in the ‘if-then' form. If you use this form, make sure that you state the predefined relationship between the variables.

In another way, you can choose to present your hypothesis as a comparison between two variables. Here, you must specify the difference you expect to observe in the results.

4. Write the first draft

Now that everything is in place, it's time to write your hypothesis. For starters, create the first draft. In this version, write what you expect to find from your research.

Clearly separate your independent and dependent variables and the link between them. Don't fixate on syntax at this stage. The goal is to ensure your hypothesis addresses the issue.

5. Proof your hypothesis

After preparing the first draft of your hypothesis, you need to inspect it thoroughly. It should tick all the boxes, like being concise, straightforward, relevant, and accurate. Your final hypothesis has to be well-structured as well.

Research projects are an exciting and crucial part of being a scholar. And once you have your research question, you need a great hypothesis to begin conducting research. Thus, knowing how to write a hypothesis is very important.

Now that you have a firmer grasp on what a good hypothesis constitutes, the different kinds there are, and what process to follow, you will find it much easier to write your hypothesis, which ultimately helps your research.

Now it's easier than ever to streamline your research workflow with SciSpace Discover . Its integrated, comprehensive end-to-end platform for research allows scholars to easily discover, write and publish their research and fosters collaboration.

It includes everything you need, including a repository of over 270 million research papers across disciplines, SEO-optimized summaries and public profiles to show your expertise and experience.

If you found these tips on writing a research hypothesis useful, head over to our blog on Statistical Hypothesis Testing to learn about the top researchers, papers, and institutions in this domain.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. what is the definition of hypothesis.

According to the Oxford dictionary, a hypothesis is defined as “An idea or explanation of something that is based on a few known facts, but that has not yet been proved to be true or correct”.

2. What is an example of hypothesis?

The hypothesis is a statement that proposes a relationship between two or more variables. An example: "If we increase the number of new users who join our platform by 25%, then we will see an increase in revenue."

3. What is an example of null hypothesis?

A null hypothesis is a statement that there is no relationship between two variables. The null hypothesis is written as H0. The null hypothesis states that there is no effect. For example, if you're studying whether or not a particular type of exercise increases strength, your null hypothesis will be "there is no difference in strength between people who exercise and people who don't."

4. What are the types of research?

• Fundamental research

• Applied research

• Qualitative research

• Quantitative research

• Mixed research

• Exploratory research

• Longitudinal research

• Cross-sectional research

• Field research

• Laboratory research

• Fixed research

• Flexible research

• Action research

• Policy research

• Classification research

• Comparative research

• Causal research

• Inductive research

• Deductive research

5. How to write a hypothesis?

• Your hypothesis should be able to predict the relationship and outcome.

• Avoid wordiness by keeping it simple and brief.

• Your hypothesis should contain observable and testable outcomes.

• Your hypothesis should be relevant to the research question.

6. What are the 2 types of hypothesis?

• Null hypotheses are used to test the claim that "there is no difference between two groups of data".

• Alternative hypotheses test the claim that "there is a difference between two data groups".

7. Difference between research question and research hypothesis?

A research question is a broad, open-ended question you will try to answer through your research. A hypothesis is a statement based on prior research or theory that you expect to be true due to your study. Example - Research question: What are the factors that influence the adoption of the new technology? Research hypothesis: There is a positive relationship between age, education and income level with the adoption of the new technology.

8. What is plural for hypothesis?

The plural of hypothesis is hypotheses. Here's an example of how it would be used in a statement, "Numerous well-considered hypotheses are presented in this part, and they are supported by tables and figures that are well-illustrated."

9. What is the red queen hypothesis?

The red queen hypothesis in evolutionary biology states that species must constantly evolve to avoid extinction because if they don't, they will be outcompeted by other species that are evolving. Leigh Van Valen first proposed it in 1973; since then, it has been tested and substantiated many times.

10. Who is known as the father of null hypothesis?

The father of the null hypothesis is Sir Ronald Fisher. He published a paper in 1925 that introduced the concept of null hypothesis testing, and he was also the first to use the term itself.

11. When to reject null hypothesis?

You need to find a significant difference between your two populations to reject the null hypothesis. You can determine that by running statistical tests such as an independent sample t-test or a dependent sample t-test. You should reject the null hypothesis if the p-value is less than 0.05.

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How to Write a Great Hypothesis

Hypothesis Format, Examples, and Tips

Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

Amy Morin, LCSW, is a psychotherapist and international bestselling author. Her books, including "13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do," have been translated into more than 40 languages. Her TEDx talk,  "The Secret of Becoming Mentally Strong," is one of the most viewed talks of all time.

Verywell / Alex Dos Diaz

• The Scientific Method

Hypothesis Format

Falsifiability of a hypothesis, operational definitions, types of hypotheses, hypotheses examples.

• Collecting Data

Frequently Asked Questions

A hypothesis is a tentative statement about the relationship between two or more  variables. It is a specific, testable prediction about what you expect to happen in a study.

One hypothesis example would be a study designed to look at the relationship between sleep deprivation and test performance might have a hypothesis that states: "This study is designed to assess the hypothesis that sleep-deprived people will perform worse on a test than individuals who are not sleep-deprived."

This article explores how a hypothesis is used in psychology research, how to write a good hypothesis, and the different types of hypotheses you might use.

The Hypothesis in the Scientific Method

In the scientific method , whether it involves research in psychology, biology, or some other area, a hypothesis represents what the researchers think will happen in an experiment. The scientific method involves the following steps:

• Forming a question
• Performing background research
• Creating a hypothesis
• Designing an experiment
• Collecting data
• Analyzing the results
• Drawing conclusions
• Communicating the results

The hypothesis is a prediction, but it involves more than a guess. Most of the time, the hypothesis begins with a question which is then explored through background research. It is only at this point that researchers begin to develop a testable hypothesis. Unless you are creating an exploratory study, your hypothesis should always explain what you  expect  to happen.

In a study exploring the effects of a particular drug, the hypothesis might be that researchers expect the drug to have some type of effect on the symptoms of a specific illness. In psychology, the hypothesis might focus on how a certain aspect of the environment might influence a particular behavior.

Remember, a hypothesis does not have to be correct. While the hypothesis predicts what the researchers expect to see, the goal of the research is to determine whether this guess is right or wrong. When conducting an experiment, researchers might explore a number of factors to determine which ones might contribute to the ultimate outcome.

In many cases, researchers may find that the results of an experiment  do not  support the original hypothesis. When writing up these results, the researchers might suggest other options that should be explored in future studies.

In many cases, researchers might draw a hypothesis from a specific theory or build on previous research. For example, prior research has shown that stress can impact the immune system. So a researcher might hypothesize: "People with high-stress levels will be more likely to contract a common cold after being exposed to the virus than people who have low-stress levels."

In other instances, researchers might look at commonly held beliefs or folk wisdom. "Birds of a feather flock together" is one example of folk wisdom that a psychologist might try to investigate. The researcher might pose a specific hypothesis that "People tend to select romantic partners who are similar to them in interests and educational level."

Elements of a Good Hypothesis

So how do you write a good hypothesis? When trying to come up with a hypothesis for your research or experiments, ask yourself the following questions:

• Is your hypothesis based on your research on a topic?
• Can your hypothesis be tested?
• Does your hypothesis include independent and dependent variables?

Before you come up with a specific hypothesis, spend some time doing background research. Once you have completed a literature review, start thinking about potential questions you still have. Pay attention to the discussion section in the  journal articles you read . Many authors will suggest questions that still need to be explored.

To form a hypothesis, you should take these steps:

• Collect as many observations about a topic or problem as you can.
• Evaluate these observations and look for possible causes of the problem.
• Create a list of possible explanations that you might want to explore.
• After you have developed some possible hypotheses, think of ways that you could confirm or disprove each hypothesis through experimentation. This is known as falsifiability.

In the scientific method ,  falsifiability is an important part of any valid hypothesis.   In order to test a claim scientifically, it must be possible that the claim could be proven false.

Students sometimes confuse the idea of falsifiability with the idea that it means that something is false, which is not the case. What falsifiability means is that  if  something was false, then it is possible to demonstrate that it is false.

One of the hallmarks of pseudoscience is that it makes claims that cannot be refuted or proven false.

A variable is a factor or element that can be changed and manipulated in ways that are observable and measurable. However, the researcher must also define how the variable will be manipulated and measured in the study.

For example, a researcher might operationally define the variable " test anxiety " as the results of a self-report measure of anxiety experienced during an exam. A "study habits" variable might be defined by the amount of studying that actually occurs as measured by time.

These precise descriptions are important because many things can be measured in a number of different ways. One of the basic principles of any type of scientific research is that the results must be replicable.   By clearly detailing the specifics of how the variables were measured and manipulated, other researchers can better understand the results and repeat the study if needed.

Some variables are more difficult than others to define. How would you operationally define a variable such as aggression ? For obvious ethical reasons, researchers cannot create a situation in which a person behaves aggressively toward others.

In order to measure this variable, the researcher must devise a measurement that assesses aggressive behavior without harming other people. In this situation, the researcher might utilize a simulated task to measure aggressiveness.

Hypothesis Checklist

• Does your hypothesis focus on something that you can actually test?
• Does your hypothesis include both an independent and dependent variable?
• Can you manipulate the variables?
• Can your hypothesis be tested without violating ethical standards?

The hypothesis you use will depend on what you are investigating and hoping to find. Some of the main types of hypotheses that you might use include:

• Simple hypothesis : This type of hypothesis suggests that there is a relationship between one independent variable and one dependent variable.
• Complex hypothesis : This type of hypothesis suggests a relationship between three or more variables, such as two independent variables and a dependent variable.
• Null hypothesis : This hypothesis suggests no relationship exists between two or more variables.
• Alternative hypothesis : This hypothesis states the opposite of the null hypothesis.
• Statistical hypothesis : This hypothesis uses statistical analysis to evaluate a representative sample of the population and then generalizes the findings to the larger group.
• Logical hypothesis : This hypothesis assumes a relationship between variables without collecting data or evidence.

A hypothesis often follows a basic format of "If {this happens} then {this will happen}." One way to structure your hypothesis is to describe what will happen to the  dependent variable  if you change the  independent variable .

The basic format might be: "If {these changes are made to a certain independent variable}, then we will observe {a change in a specific dependent variable}."

A few examples of simple hypotheses:

• "Students who eat breakfast will perform better on a math exam than students who do not eat breakfast."
• Complex hypothesis: "Students who experience test anxiety before an English exam will get lower scores than students who do not experience test anxiety."​
• "Motorists who talk on the phone while driving will be more likely to make errors on a driving course than those who do not talk on the phone."

Examples of a complex hypothesis include:

• "People with high-sugar diets and sedentary activity levels are more likely to develop depression."
• "Younger people who are regularly exposed to green, outdoor areas have better subjective well-being than older adults who have limited exposure to green spaces."

Examples of a null hypothesis include:

• "Children who receive a new reading intervention will have scores different than students who do not receive the intervention."
• "There will be no difference in scores on a memory recall task between children and adults."

Examples of an alternative hypothesis:

• "Children who receive a new reading intervention will perform better than students who did not receive the intervention."
• "Adults will perform better on a memory task than children." 

Collecting Data on Your Hypothesis

Once a researcher has formed a testable hypothesis, the next step is to select a research design and start collecting data. The research method depends largely on exactly what they are studying. There are two basic types of research methods: descriptive research and experimental research.

Descriptive Research Methods

Descriptive research such as  case studies ,  naturalistic observations , and surveys are often used when it would be impossible or difficult to  conduct an experiment . These methods are best used to describe different aspects of a behavior or psychological phenomenon.

Once a researcher has collected data using descriptive methods, a correlational study can then be used to look at how the variables are related. This type of research method might be used to investigate a hypothesis that is difficult to test experimentally.

Experimental Research Methods

Experimental methods  are used to demonstrate causal relationships between variables. In an experiment, the researcher systematically manipulates a variable of interest (known as the independent variable) and measures the effect on another variable (known as the dependent variable).

Unlike correlational studies, which can only be used to determine if there is a relationship between two variables, experimental methods can be used to determine the actual nature of the relationship—whether changes in one variable actually  cause  another to change.

A Word From Verywell

The hypothesis is a critical part of any scientific exploration. It represents what researchers expect to find in a study or experiment. In situations where the hypothesis is unsupported by the research, the research still has value. Such research helps us better understand how different aspects of the natural world relate to one another. It also helps us develop new hypotheses that can then be tested in the future.

Some examples of how to write a hypothesis include:

• "Staying up late will lead to worse test performance the next day."
• "People who consume one apple each day will visit the doctor fewer times each year."
• "Breaking study sessions up into three 20-minute sessions will lead to better test results than a single 60-minute study session."

The four parts of a hypothesis are:

• The research question
• The independent variable (IV)
• The dependent variable (DV)
• The proposed relationship between the IV and DV

Castillo M. The scientific method: a need for something better? . AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 2013;34(9):1669-71. doi:10.3174/ajnr.A3401

Nevid J. Psychology: Concepts and Applications. Wadworth, 2013.

By Kendra Cherry, MSEd Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

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A Beginner’s Guide to Hypothesis Testing in Business

• 30 Mar 2021

Becoming a more data-driven decision-maker can bring several benefits to your organization, enabling you to identify new opportunities to pursue and threats to abate. Rather than allowing subjective thinking to guide your business strategy, backing your decisions with data can empower your company to become more innovative and, ultimately, profitable.

If you’re new to data-driven decision-making, you might be wondering how data translates into business strategy. The answer lies in generating a hypothesis and verifying or rejecting it based on what various forms of data tell you.

Below is a look at hypothesis testing and the role it plays in helping businesses become more data-driven.

Access your free e-book today.

What Is Hypothesis Testing?

To understand what hypothesis testing is, it’s important first to understand what a hypothesis is.

A hypothesis or hypothesis statement seeks to explain why something has happened, or what might happen, under certain conditions. It can also be used to understand how different variables relate to each other. Hypotheses are often written as if-then statements; for example, “If this happens, then this will happen.”

Hypothesis testing , then, is a statistical means of testing an assumption stated in a hypothesis. While the specific methodology leveraged depends on the nature of the hypothesis and data available, hypothesis testing typically uses sample data to extrapolate insights about a larger population.

Hypothesis Testing in Business

When it comes to data-driven decision-making, there’s a certain amount of risk that can mislead a professional. This could be due to flawed thinking or observations, incomplete or inaccurate data , or the presence of unknown variables. The danger in this is that, if major strategic decisions are made based on flawed insights, it can lead to wasted resources, missed opportunities, and catastrophic outcomes.

The real value of hypothesis testing in business is that it allows professionals to test their theories and assumptions before putting them into action. This essentially allows an organization to verify its analysis is correct before committing resources to implement a broader strategy.

As one example, consider a company that wishes to launch a new marketing campaign to revitalize sales during a slow period. Doing so could be an incredibly expensive endeavor, depending on the campaign’s size and complexity. The company, therefore, may wish to test the campaign on a smaller scale to understand how it will perform.

In this example, the hypothesis that’s being tested would fall along the lines of: “If the company launches a new marketing campaign, then it will translate into an increase in sales.” It may even be possible to quantify how much of a lift in sales the company expects to see from the effort. Pending the results of the pilot campaign, the business would then know whether it makes sense to roll it out more broadly.

Related: 9 Fundamental Data Science Skills for Business Professionals

Key Considerations for Hypothesis Testing

1. alternative hypothesis and null hypothesis.

In hypothesis testing, the hypothesis that’s being tested is known as the alternative hypothesis . Often, it’s expressed as a correlation or statistical relationship between variables. The null hypothesis , on the other hand, is a statement that’s meant to show there’s no statistical relationship between the variables being tested. It’s typically the exact opposite of whatever is stated in the alternative hypothesis.

For example, consider a company’s leadership team that historically and reliably sees $12 million in monthly revenue. They want to understand if reducing the price of their services will attract more customers and, in turn, increase revenue.

In this case, the alternative hypothesis may take the form of a statement such as: “If we reduce the price of our flagship service by five percent, then we’ll see an increase in sales and realize revenues greater than $12 million in the next month.”

The null hypothesis, on the other hand, would indicate that revenues wouldn’t increase from the base of $12 million, or might even decrease.

Check out the video below about the difference between an alternative and a null hypothesis, and subscribe to our YouTube channel for more explainer content.

2. Significance Level and P-Value

Statistically speaking, if you were to run the same scenario 100 times, you’d likely receive somewhat different results each time. If you were to plot these results in a distribution plot, you’d see the most likely outcome is at the tallest point in the graph, with less likely outcomes falling to the right and left of that point.

With this in mind, imagine you’ve completed your hypothesis test and have your results, which indicate there may be a correlation between the variables you were testing. To understand your results' significance, you’ll need to identify a p-value for the test, which helps note how confident you are in the test results.

In statistics, the p-value depicts the probability that, assuming the null hypothesis is correct, you might still observe results that are at least as extreme as the results of your hypothesis test. The smaller the p-value, the more likely the alternative hypothesis is correct, and the greater the significance of your results.

3. One-Sided vs. Two-Sided Testing

When it’s time to test your hypothesis, it’s important to leverage the correct testing method. The two most common hypothesis testing methods are one-sided and two-sided tests , or one-tailed and two-tailed tests, respectively.

Typically, you’d leverage a one-sided test when you have a strong conviction about the direction of change you expect to see due to your hypothesis test. You’d leverage a two-sided test when you’re less confident in the direction of change.

4. Sampling

To perform hypothesis testing in the first place, you need to collect a sample of data to be analyzed. Depending on the question you’re seeking to answer or investigate, you might collect samples through surveys, observational studies, or experiments.

A survey involves asking a series of questions to a random population sample and recording self-reported responses.

Observational studies involve a researcher observing a sample population and collecting data as it occurs naturally, without intervention.

Finally, an experiment involves dividing a sample into multiple groups, one of which acts as the control group. For each non-control group, the variable being studied is manipulated to determine how the data collected differs from that of the control group.

Learn How to Perform Hypothesis Testing

Hypothesis testing is a complex process involving different moving pieces that can allow an organization to effectively leverage its data and inform strategic decisions.

If you’re interested in better understanding hypothesis testing and the role it can play within your organization, one option is to complete a course that focuses on the process. Doing so can lay the statistical and analytical foundation you need to succeed.

Do you want to learn more about hypothesis testing? Explore Business Analytics —one of our online business essentials courses —and download our Beginner’s Guide to Data & Analytics .

About the Author

Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Assignments

• Annotated Bibliography
• Analyzing a Scholarly Journal Article
• Group Presentations
• Dealing with Nervousness
• Using Visual Aids
• Grading Someone Else's Paper
• Types of Structured Group Activities
• Group Project Survival Skills
• Leading a Class Discussion
• Multiple Book Review Essay
• Reviewing Collected Works
• Writing a Case Analysis Paper
• Writing a Case Study
• About Informed Consent
• Writing Field Notes
• Writing a Policy Memo
• Writing a Reflective Paper
• Writing a Research Proposal
• Generative AI and Writing
• Acknowledgments

A case study research paper examines a person, place, event, condition, phenomenon, or other type of subject of analysis in order to extrapolate  key themes and results that help predict future trends, illuminate previously hidden issues that can be applied to practice, and/or provide a means for understanding an important research problem with greater clarity. A case study research paper usually examines a single subject of analysis, but case study papers can also be designed as a comparative investigation that shows relationships between two or more subjects. The methods used to study a case can rest within a quantitative, qualitative, or mixed-method investigative paradigm.

Case Studies. Writing@CSU. Colorado State University; Mills, Albert J. , Gabrielle Durepos, and Eiden Wiebe, editors. Encyclopedia of Case Study Research . Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, 2010 ; “What is a Case Study?” In Swanborn, Peter G. Case Study Research: What, Why and How? London: SAGE, 2010.

How to Approach Writing a Case Study Research Paper

General information about how to choose a topic to investigate can be found under the " Choosing a Research Problem " tab in the Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper writing guide. Review this page because it may help you identify a subject of analysis that can be investigated using a case study design.

However, identifying a case to investigate involves more than choosing the research problem . A case study encompasses a problem contextualized around the application of in-depth analysis, interpretation, and discussion, often resulting in specific recommendations for action or for improving existing conditions. As Seawright and Gerring note, practical considerations such as time and access to information can influence case selection, but these issues should not be the sole factors used in describing the methodological justification for identifying a particular case to study. Given this, selecting a case includes considering the following:

• The case represents an unusual or atypical example of a research problem that requires more in-depth analysis? Cases often represent a topic that rests on the fringes of prior investigations because the case may provide new ways of understanding the research problem. For example, if the research problem is to identify strategies to improve policies that support girl's access to secondary education in predominantly Muslim nations, you could consider using Azerbaijan as a case study rather than selecting a more obvious nation in the Middle East. Doing so may reveal important new insights into recommending how governments in other predominantly Muslim nations can formulate policies that support improved access to education for girls.
• The case provides important insight or illuminate a previously hidden problem? In-depth analysis of a case can be based on the hypothesis that the case study will reveal trends or issues that have not been exposed in prior research or will reveal new and important implications for practice. For example, anecdotal evidence may suggest drug use among homeless veterans is related to their patterns of travel throughout the day. Assuming prior studies have not looked at individual travel choices as a way to study access to illicit drug use, a case study that observes a homeless veteran could reveal how issues of personal mobility choices facilitate regular access to illicit drugs. Note that it is important to conduct a thorough literature review to ensure that your assumption about the need to reveal new insights or previously hidden problems is valid and evidence-based.
• The case challenges and offers a counter-point to prevailing assumptions? Over time, research on any given topic can fall into a trap of developing assumptions based on outdated studies that are still applied to new or changing conditions or the idea that something should simply be accepted as "common sense," even though the issue has not been thoroughly tested in current practice. A case study analysis may offer an opportunity to gather evidence that challenges prevailing assumptions about a research problem and provide a new set of recommendations applied to practice that have not been tested previously. For example, perhaps there has been a long practice among scholars to apply a particular theory in explaining the relationship between two subjects of analysis. Your case could challenge this assumption by applying an innovative theoretical framework [perhaps borrowed from another discipline] to explore whether this approach offers new ways of understanding the research problem. Taking a contrarian stance is one of the most important ways that new knowledge and understanding develops from existing literature.
• The case provides an opportunity to pursue action leading to the resolution of a problem? Another way to think about choosing a case to study is to consider how the results from investigating a particular case may result in findings that reveal ways in which to resolve an existing or emerging problem. For example, studying the case of an unforeseen incident, such as a fatal accident at a railroad crossing, can reveal hidden issues that could be applied to preventative measures that contribute to reducing the chance of accidents in the future. In this example, a case study investigating the accident could lead to a better understanding of where to strategically locate additional signals at other railroad crossings so as to better warn drivers of an approaching train, particularly when visibility is hindered by heavy rain, fog, or at night.
• The case offers a new direction in future research? A case study can be used as a tool for an exploratory investigation that highlights the need for further research about the problem. A case can be used when there are few studies that help predict an outcome or that establish a clear understanding about how best to proceed in addressing a problem. For example, after conducting a thorough literature review [very important!], you discover that little research exists showing the ways in which women contribute to promoting water conservation in rural communities of east central Africa. A case study of how women contribute to saving water in a rural village of Uganda can lay the foundation for understanding the need for more thorough research that documents how women in their roles as cooks and family caregivers think about water as a valuable resource within their community. This example of a case study could also point to the need for scholars to build new theoretical frameworks around the topic [e.g., applying feminist theories of work and family to the issue of water conservation].

Eisenhardt, Kathleen M. “Building Theories from Case Study Research.” Academy of Management Review 14 (October 1989): 532-550; Emmel, Nick. Sampling and Choosing Cases in Qualitative Research: A Realist Approach . Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, 2013; Gerring, John. “What Is a Case Study and What Is It Good for?” American Political Science Review 98 (May 2004): 341-354; Mills, Albert J. , Gabrielle Durepos, and Eiden Wiebe, editors. Encyclopedia of Case Study Research . Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, 2010; Seawright, Jason and John Gerring. "Case Selection Techniques in Case Study Research." Political Research Quarterly 61 (June 2008): 294-308.

Structure and Writing Style

The purpose of a paper in the social sciences designed around a case study is to thoroughly investigate a subject of analysis in order to reveal a new understanding about the research problem and, in so doing, contributing new knowledge to what is already known from previous studies. In applied social sciences disciplines [e.g., education, social work, public administration, etc.], case studies may also be used to reveal best practices, highlight key programs, or investigate interesting aspects of professional work.

In general, the structure of a case study research paper is not all that different from a standard college-level research paper. However, there are subtle differences you should be aware of. Here are the key elements to organizing and writing a case study research paper.

I.  Introduction

As with any research paper, your introduction should serve as a roadmap for your readers to ascertain the scope and purpose of your study . The introduction to a case study research paper, however, should not only describe the research problem and its significance, but you should also succinctly describe why the case is being used and how it relates to addressing the problem. The two elements should be linked. With this in mind, a good introduction answers these four questions:

• What is being studied? Describe the research problem and describe the subject of analysis [the case] you have chosen to address the problem. Explain how they are linked and what elements of the case will help to expand knowledge and understanding about the problem.
• Why is this topic important to investigate? Describe the significance of the research problem and state why a case study design and the subject of analysis that the paper is designed around is appropriate in addressing the problem.
• What did we know about this topic before I did this study? Provide background that helps lead the reader into the more in-depth literature review to follow. If applicable, summarize prior case study research applied to the research problem and why it fails to adequately address the problem. Describe why your case will be useful. If no prior case studies have been used to address the research problem, explain why you have selected this subject of analysis.
• How will this study advance new knowledge or new ways of understanding? Explain why your case study will be suitable in helping to expand knowledge and understanding about the research problem.

Each of these questions should be addressed in no more than a few paragraphs. Exceptions to this can be when you are addressing a complex research problem or subject of analysis that requires more in-depth background information.

II.  Literature Review

The literature review for a case study research paper is generally structured the same as it is for any college-level research paper. The difference, however, is that the literature review is focused on providing background information and  enabling historical interpretation of the subject of analysis in relation to the research problem the case is intended to address . This includes synthesizing studies that help to:

• Place relevant works in the context of their contribution to understanding the case study being investigated . This would involve summarizing studies that have used a similar subject of analysis to investigate the research problem. If there is literature using the same or a very similar case to study, you need to explain why duplicating past research is important [e.g., conditions have changed; prior studies were conducted long ago, etc.].
• Describe the relationship each work has to the others under consideration that informs the reader why this case is applicable . Your literature review should include a description of any works that support using the case to investigate the research problem and the underlying research questions.
• Identify new ways to interpret prior research using the case study . If applicable, review any research that has examined the research problem using a different research design. Explain how your use of a case study design may reveal new knowledge or a new perspective or that can redirect research in an important new direction.
• Resolve conflicts amongst seemingly contradictory previous studies . This refers to synthesizing any literature that points to unresolved issues of concern about the research problem and describing how the subject of analysis that forms the case study can help resolve these existing contradictions.
• Point the way in fulfilling a need for additional research . Your review should examine any literature that lays a foundation for understanding why your case study design and the subject of analysis around which you have designed your study may reveal a new way of approaching the research problem or offer a perspective that points to the need for additional research.
• Expose any gaps that exist in the literature that the case study could help to fill . Summarize any literature that not only shows how your subject of analysis contributes to understanding the research problem, but how your case contributes to a new way of understanding the problem that prior research has failed to do.
• Locate your own research within the context of existing literature [very important!] . Collectively, your literature review should always place your case study within the larger domain of prior research about the problem. The overarching purpose of reviewing pertinent literature in a case study paper is to demonstrate that you have thoroughly identified and synthesized prior studies in relation to explaining the relevance of the case in addressing the research problem.

III.  Method

In this section, you explain why you selected a particular case [i.e., subject of analysis] and the strategy you used to identify and ultimately decide that your case was appropriate in addressing the research problem. The way you describe the methods used varies depending on the type of subject of analysis that constitutes your case study.

If your subject of analysis is an incident or event . In the social and behavioral sciences, the event or incident that represents the case to be studied is usually bounded by time and place, with a clear beginning and end and with an identifiable location or position relative to its surroundings. The subject of analysis can be a rare or critical event or it can focus on a typical or regular event. The purpose of studying a rare event is to illuminate new ways of thinking about the broader research problem or to test a hypothesis. Critical incident case studies must describe the method by which you identified the event and explain the process by which you determined the validity of this case to inform broader perspectives about the research problem or to reveal new findings. However, the event does not have to be a rare or uniquely significant to support new thinking about the research problem or to challenge an existing hypothesis. For example, Walo, Bull, and Breen conducted a case study to identify and evaluate the direct and indirect economic benefits and costs of a local sports event in the City of Lismore, New South Wales, Australia. The purpose of their study was to provide new insights from measuring the impact of a typical local sports event that prior studies could not measure well because they focused on large "mega-events." Whether the event is rare or not, the methods section should include an explanation of the following characteristics of the event: a) when did it take place; b) what were the underlying circumstances leading to the event; and, c) what were the consequences of the event in relation to the research problem.

If your subject of analysis is a person. Explain why you selected this particular individual to be studied and describe what experiences they have had that provide an opportunity to advance new understandings about the research problem. Mention any background about this person which might help the reader understand the significance of their experiences that make them worthy of study. This includes describing the relationships this person has had with other people, institutions, and/or events that support using them as the subject for a case study research paper. It is particularly important to differentiate the person as the subject of analysis from others and to succinctly explain how the person relates to examining the research problem [e.g., why is one politician in a particular local election used to show an increase in voter turnout from any other candidate running in the election]. Note that these issues apply to a specific group of people used as a case study unit of analysis [e.g., a classroom of students].

If your subject of analysis is a place. In general, a case study that investigates a place suggests a subject of analysis that is unique or special in some way and that this uniqueness can be used to build new understanding or knowledge about the research problem. A case study of a place must not only describe its various attributes relevant to the research problem [e.g., physical, social, historical, cultural, economic, political], but you must state the method by which you determined that this place will illuminate new understandings about the research problem. It is also important to articulate why a particular place as the case for study is being used if similar places also exist [i.e., if you are studying patterns of homeless encampments of veterans in open spaces, explain why you are studying Echo Park in Los Angeles rather than Griffith Park?]. If applicable, describe what type of human activity involving this place makes it a good choice to study [e.g., prior research suggests Echo Park has more homeless veterans].

If your subject of analysis is a phenomenon. A phenomenon refers to a fact, occurrence, or circumstance that can be studied or observed but with the cause or explanation to be in question. In this sense, a phenomenon that forms your subject of analysis can encompass anything that can be observed or presumed to exist but is not fully understood. In the social and behavioral sciences, the case usually focuses on human interaction within a complex physical, social, economic, cultural, or political system. For example, the phenomenon could be the observation that many vehicles used by ISIS fighters are small trucks with English language advertisements on them. The research problem could be that ISIS fighters are difficult to combat because they are highly mobile. The research questions could be how and by what means are these vehicles used by ISIS being supplied to the militants and how might supply lines to these vehicles be cut off? How might knowing the suppliers of these trucks reveal larger networks of collaborators and financial support? A case study of a phenomenon most often encompasses an in-depth analysis of a cause and effect that is grounded in an interactive relationship between people and their environment in some way.

NOTE:   The choice of the case or set of cases to study cannot appear random. Evidence that supports the method by which you identified and chose your subject of analysis should clearly support investigation of the research problem and linked to key findings from your literature review. Be sure to cite any studies that helped you determine that the case you chose was appropriate for examining the problem.

IV.  Discussion

The main elements of your discussion section are generally the same as any research paper, but centered around interpreting and drawing conclusions about the key findings from your analysis of the case study. Note that a general social sciences research paper may contain a separate section to report findings. However, in a paper designed around a case study, it is common to combine a description of the results with the discussion about their implications. The objectives of your discussion section should include the following:

Reiterate the Research Problem/State the Major Findings Briefly reiterate the research problem you are investigating and explain why the subject of analysis around which you designed the case study were used. You should then describe the findings revealed from your study of the case using direct, declarative, and succinct proclamation of the study results. Highlight any findings that were unexpected or especially profound.

Explain the Meaning of the Findings and Why They are Important Systematically explain the meaning of your case study findings and why you believe they are important. Begin this part of the section by repeating what you consider to be your most important or surprising finding first, then systematically review each finding. Be sure to thoroughly extrapolate what your analysis of the case can tell the reader about situations or conditions beyond the actual case that was studied while, at the same time, being careful not to misconstrue or conflate a finding that undermines the external validity of your conclusions.

Relate the Findings to Similar Studies No study in the social sciences is so novel or possesses such a restricted focus that it has absolutely no relation to previously published research. The discussion section should relate your case study results to those found in other studies, particularly if questions raised from prior studies served as the motivation for choosing your subject of analysis. This is important because comparing and contrasting the findings of other studies helps support the overall importance of your results and it highlights how and in what ways your case study design and the subject of analysis differs from prior research about the topic.

Consider Alternative Explanations of the Findings Remember that the purpose of social science research is to discover and not to prove. When writing the discussion section, you should carefully consider all possible explanations revealed by the case study results, rather than just those that fit your hypothesis or prior assumptions and biases. Be alert to what the in-depth analysis of the case may reveal about the research problem, including offering a contrarian perspective to what scholars have stated in prior research if that is how the findings can be interpreted from your case.

Acknowledge the Study's Limitations You can state the study's limitations in the conclusion section of your paper but describing the limitations of your subject of analysis in the discussion section provides an opportunity to identify the limitations and explain why they are not significant. This part of the discussion section should also note any unanswered questions or issues your case study could not address. More detailed information about how to document any limitations to your research can be found here .

Suggest Areas for Further Research Although your case study may offer important insights about the research problem, there are likely additional questions related to the problem that remain unanswered or findings that unexpectedly revealed themselves as a result of your in-depth analysis of the case. Be sure that the recommendations for further research are linked to the research problem and that you explain why your recommendations are valid in other contexts and based on the original assumptions of your study.

V.  Conclusion

As with any research paper, you should summarize your conclusion in clear, simple language; emphasize how the findings from your case study differs from or supports prior research and why. Do not simply reiterate the discussion section. Provide a synthesis of key findings presented in the paper to show how these converge to address the research problem. If you haven't already done so in the discussion section, be sure to document the limitations of your case study and any need for further research.

The function of your paper's conclusion is to: 1) reiterate the main argument supported by the findings from your case study; 2) state clearly the context, background, and necessity of pursuing the research problem using a case study design in relation to an issue, controversy, or a gap found from reviewing the literature; and, 3) provide a place to persuasively and succinctly restate the significance of your research problem, given that the reader has now been presented with in-depth information about the topic.

Consider the following points to help ensure your conclusion is appropriate:

• If the argument or purpose of your paper is complex, you may need to summarize these points for your reader.
• If prior to your conclusion, you have not yet explained the significance of your findings or if you are proceeding inductively, use the conclusion of your paper to describe your main points and explain their significance.
• Move from a detailed to a general level of consideration of the case study's findings that returns the topic to the context provided by the introduction or within a new context that emerges from your case study findings.

Note that, depending on the discipline you are writing in or the preferences of your professor, the concluding paragraph may contain your final reflections on the evidence presented as it applies to practice or on the essay's central research problem. However, the nature of being introspective about the subject of analysis you have investigated will depend on whether you are explicitly asked to express your observations in this way.

Problems to Avoid

Overgeneralization One of the goals of a case study is to lay a foundation for understanding broader trends and issues applied to similar circumstances. However, be careful when drawing conclusions from your case study. They must be evidence-based and grounded in the results of the study; otherwise, it is merely speculation. Looking at a prior example, it would be incorrect to state that a factor in improving girls access to education in Azerbaijan and the policy implications this may have for improving access in other Muslim nations is due to girls access to social media if there is no documentary evidence from your case study to indicate this. There may be anecdotal evidence that retention rates were better for girls who were engaged with social media, but this observation would only point to the need for further research and would not be a definitive finding if this was not a part of your original research agenda.

Failure to Document Limitations No case is going to reveal all that needs to be understood about a research problem. Therefore, just as you have to clearly state the limitations of a general research study , you must describe the specific limitations inherent in the subject of analysis. For example, the case of studying how women conceptualize the need for water conservation in a village in Uganda could have limited application in other cultural contexts or in areas where fresh water from rivers or lakes is plentiful and, therefore, conservation is understood more in terms of managing access rather than preserving access to a scarce resource.

Failure to Extrapolate All Possible Implications Just as you don't want to over-generalize from your case study findings, you also have to be thorough in the consideration of all possible outcomes or recommendations derived from your findings. If you do not, your reader may question the validity of your analysis, particularly if you failed to document an obvious outcome from your case study research. For example, in the case of studying the accident at the railroad crossing to evaluate where and what types of warning signals should be located, you failed to take into consideration speed limit signage as well as warning signals. When designing your case study, be sure you have thoroughly addressed all aspects of the problem and do not leave gaps in your analysis that leave the reader questioning the results.

Case Studies. Writing@CSU. Colorado State University; Gerring, John. Case Study Research: Principles and Practices . New York: Cambridge University Press, 2007; Merriam, Sharan B. Qualitative Research and Case Study Applications in Education . Rev. ed. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 1998; Miller, Lisa L. “The Use of Case Studies in Law and Social Science Research.” Annual Review of Law and Social Science 14 (2018): TBD; Mills, Albert J., Gabrielle Durepos, and Eiden Wiebe, editors. Encyclopedia of Case Study Research . Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, 2010; Putney, LeAnn Grogan. "Case Study." In Encyclopedia of Research Design , Neil J. Salkind, editor. (Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, 2010), pp. 116-120; Simons, Helen. Case Study Research in Practice . London: SAGE Publications, 2009;  Kratochwill,  Thomas R. and Joel R. Levin, editors. Single-Case Research Design and Analysis: New Development for Psychology and Education .  Hilldsale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1992; Swanborn, Peter G. Case Study Research: What, Why and How? London : SAGE, 2010; Yin, Robert K. Case Study Research: Design and Methods . 6th edition. Los Angeles, CA, SAGE Publications, 2014; Walo, Maree, Adrian Bull, and Helen Breen. “Achieving Economic Benefits at Local Events: A Case Study of a Local Sports Event.” Festival Management and Event Tourism 4 (1996): 95-106.

Writing Tip

At Least Five Misconceptions about Case Study Research

Social science case studies are often perceived as limited in their ability to create new knowledge because they are not randomly selected and findings cannot be generalized to larger populations. Flyvbjerg examines five misunderstandings about case study research and systematically "corrects" each one. To quote, these are:

Misunderstanding 1 :  General, theoretical [context-independent] knowledge is more valuable than concrete, practical [context-dependent] knowledge. Misunderstanding 2 :  One cannot generalize on the basis of an individual case; therefore, the case study cannot contribute to scientific development. Misunderstanding 3 :  The case study is most useful for generating hypotheses; that is, in the first stage of a total research process, whereas other methods are more suitable for hypotheses testing and theory building. Misunderstanding 4 :  The case study contains a bias toward verification, that is, a tendency to confirm the researcher’s preconceived notions. Misunderstanding 5 :  It is often difficult to summarize and develop general propositions and theories on the basis of specific case studies [p. 221].

While writing your paper, think introspectively about how you addressed these misconceptions because to do so can help you strengthen the validity and reliability of your research by clarifying issues of case selection, the testing and challenging of existing assumptions, the interpretation of key findings, and the summation of case outcomes. Think of a case study research paper as a complete, in-depth narrative about the specific properties and key characteristics of your subject of analysis applied to the research problem.

Flyvbjerg, Bent. “Five Misunderstandings About Case-Study Research.” Qualitative Inquiry 12 (April 2006): 219-245.

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How to Develop a Good Research Hypothesis

The story of a research study begins by asking a question. Researchers all around the globe are asking curious questions and formulating research hypothesis. However, whether the research study provides an effective conclusion depends on how well one develops a good research hypothesis. Research hypothesis examples could help researchers get an idea as to how to write a good research hypothesis.

This blog will help you understand what is a research hypothesis, its characteristics and, how to formulate a research hypothesis

Table of Contents

What is Hypothesis?

Hypothesis is an assumption or an idea proposed for the sake of argument so that it can be tested. It is a precise, testable statement of what the researchers predict will be outcome of the study.  Hypothesis usually involves proposing a relationship between two variables: the independent variable (what the researchers change) and the dependent variable (what the research measures).

What is a Research Hypothesis?

Research hypothesis is a statement that introduces a research question and proposes an expected result. It is an integral part of the scientific method that forms the basis of scientific experiments. Therefore, you need to be careful and thorough when building your research hypothesis. A minor flaw in the construction of your hypothesis could have an adverse effect on your experiment. In research, there is a convention that the hypothesis is written in two forms, the null hypothesis, and the alternative hypothesis (called the experimental hypothesis when the method of investigation is an experiment).

Characteristics of a Good Research Hypothesis

As the hypothesis is specific, there is a testable prediction about what you expect to happen in a study. You may consider drawing hypothesis from previously published research based on the theory.

A good research hypothesis involves more effort than just a guess. In particular, your hypothesis may begin with a question that could be further explored through background research.

To help you formulate a promising research hypothesis, you should ask yourself the following questions:

• Is the language clear and focused?
• What is the relationship between your hypothesis and your research topic?
• Is your hypothesis testable? If yes, then how?
• What are the possible explanations that you might want to explore?
• Does your hypothesis include both an independent and dependent variable?
• Can you manipulate your variables without hampering the ethical standards?
• Does your research predict the relationship and outcome?
• Is your research simple and concise (avoids wordiness)?
• Is it clear with no ambiguity or assumptions about the readers’ knowledge
• Is your research observable and testable results?
• Is it relevant and specific to the research question or problem?

The questions listed above can be used as a checklist to make sure your hypothesis is based on a solid foundation. Furthermore, it can help you identify weaknesses in your hypothesis and revise it if necessary.

Source: Educational Hub

How to formulate a research hypothesis.

A testable hypothesis is not a simple statement. It is rather an intricate statement that needs to offer a clear introduction to a scientific experiment, its intentions, and the possible outcomes. However, there are some important things to consider when building a compelling hypothesis.

1. State the problem that you are trying to solve.

Make sure that the hypothesis clearly defines the topic and the focus of the experiment.

2. Try to write the hypothesis as an if-then statement.

Follow this template: If a specific action is taken, then a certain outcome is expected.

3. Define the variables

Independent variables are the ones that are manipulated, controlled, or changed. Independent variables are isolated from other factors of the study.

Dependent variables , as the name suggests are dependent on other factors of the study. They are influenced by the change in independent variable.

4. Scrutinize the hypothesis

Evaluate assumptions, predictions, and evidence rigorously to refine your understanding.

Types of Research Hypothesis

The types of research hypothesis are stated below:

1. Simple Hypothesis

It predicts the relationship between a single dependent variable and a single independent variable.

2. Complex Hypothesis

It predicts the relationship between two or more independent and dependent variables.

3. Directional Hypothesis

It specifies the expected direction to be followed to determine the relationship between variables and is derived from theory. Furthermore, it implies the researcher’s intellectual commitment to a particular outcome.

4. Non-directional Hypothesis

It does not predict the exact direction or nature of the relationship between the two variables. The non-directional hypothesis is used when there is no theory involved or when findings contradict previous research.

5. Associative and Causal Hypothesis

The associative hypothesis defines interdependency between variables. A change in one variable results in the change of the other variable. On the other hand, the causal hypothesis proposes an effect on the dependent due to manipulation of the independent variable.

6. Null Hypothesis

Null hypothesis states a negative statement to support the researcher’s findings that there is no relationship between two variables. There will be no changes in the dependent variable due the manipulation of the independent variable. Furthermore, it states results are due to chance and are not significant in terms of supporting the idea being investigated.

7. Alternative Hypothesis

It states that there is a relationship between the two variables of the study and that the results are significant to the research topic. An experimental hypothesis predicts what changes will take place in the dependent variable when the independent variable is manipulated. Also, it states that the results are not due to chance and that they are significant in terms of supporting the theory being investigated.

Research Hypothesis Examples of Independent and Dependent Variables

Research Hypothesis Example 1 The greater number of coal plants in a region (independent variable) increases water pollution (dependent variable). If you change the independent variable (building more coal factories), it will change the dependent variable (amount of water pollution).

Research Hypothesis Example 2 What is the effect of diet or regular soda (independent variable) on blood sugar levels (dependent variable)? If you change the independent variable (the type of soda you consume), it will change the dependent variable (blood sugar levels)

You should not ignore the importance of the above steps. The validity of your experiment and its results rely on a robust testable hypothesis. Developing a strong testable hypothesis has few advantages, it compels us to think intensely and specifically about the outcomes of a study. Consequently, it enables us to understand the implication of the question and the different variables involved in the study. Furthermore, it helps us to make precise predictions based on prior research. Hence, forming a hypothesis would be of great value to the research. Here are some good examples of testable hypotheses.

More importantly, you need to build a robust testable research hypothesis for your scientific experiments. A testable hypothesis is a hypothesis that can be proved or disproved as a result of experimentation.

Importance of a Testable Hypothesis

To devise and perform an experiment using scientific method, you need to make sure that your hypothesis is testable. To be considered testable, some essential criteria must be met:

• There must be a possibility to prove that the hypothesis is true.
• There must be a possibility to prove that the hypothesis is false.
• The results of the hypothesis must be reproducible.

Without these criteria, the hypothesis and the results will be vague. As a result, the experiment will not prove or disprove anything significant.

What are your experiences with building hypotheses for scientific experiments? What challenges did you face? How did you overcome these challenges? Please share your thoughts with us in the comments section.

Frequently Asked Questions

The steps to write a research hypothesis are: 1. Stating the problem: Ensure that the hypothesis defines the research problem 2. Writing a hypothesis as an 'if-then' statement: Include the action and the expected outcome of your study by following a ‘if-then’ structure. 3. Defining the variables: Define the variables as Dependent or Independent based on their dependency to other factors. 4. Scrutinizing the hypothesis: Identify the type of your hypothesis

Hypothesis testing is a statistical tool which is used to make inferences about a population data to draw conclusions for a particular hypothesis.

Hypothesis in statistics is a formal statement about the nature of a population within a structured framework of a statistical model. It is used to test an existing hypothesis by studying a population.

Research hypothesis is a statement that introduces a research question and proposes an expected result. It forms the basis of scientific experiments.

The different types of hypothesis in research are: • Null hypothesis: Null hypothesis is a negative statement to support the researcher’s findings that there is no relationship between two variables. • Alternate hypothesis: Alternate hypothesis predicts the relationship between the two variables of the study. • Directional hypothesis: Directional hypothesis specifies the expected direction to be followed to determine the relationship between variables. • Non-directional hypothesis: Non-directional hypothesis does not predict the exact direction or nature of the relationship between the two variables. • Simple hypothesis: Simple hypothesis predicts the relationship between a single dependent variable and a single independent variable. • Complex hypothesis: Complex hypothesis predicts the relationship between two or more independent and dependent variables. • Associative and casual hypothesis: Associative and casual hypothesis predicts the relationship between two or more independent and dependent variables. • Empirical hypothesis: Empirical hypothesis can be tested via experiments and observation. • Statistical hypothesis: A statistical hypothesis utilizes statistical models to draw conclusions about broader populations.

Wow! You really simplified your explanation that even dummies would find it easy to comprehend. Thank you so much.

Thanks a lot for your valuable guidance.

I enjoy reading the post. Hypotheses are actually an intrinsic part in a study. It bridges the research question and the methodology of the study.

Useful piece!

This is awesome.Wow.

It very interesting to read the topic, can you guide me any specific example of hypothesis process establish throw the Demand and supply of the specific product in market

Nicely explained

It is really a useful for me Kindly give some examples of hypothesis

It was a well explained content ,can you please give me an example with the null and alternative hypothesis illustrated

clear and concise. thanks.

So Good so Amazing

Good to learn

Thanks a lot for explaining to my level of understanding

Explained well and in simple terms. Quick read! Thank you

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Seeing Through Statistics

Jessica m. utts, hypothesis testing—examples and case studies - all with video answers.

Chapter Questions

Are null and alternative hypotheses statements about populations or samples, or does it depend on the situation?

In a February, 2013, CBS News/New York Times poll of 250 American Catholics who attend mass at least once a week, 57% answered yes to the question, “Do you favor allowing women to be priests?” (Source: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/03/06/us/catholics-america-poll.html?ref=us.) a. Set up the null and alternative hypotheses for deciding whether a majority of American Catholics who attend mass at least once a week favors allowing women to be priests. b. Using Example 23.4 as a guide, compute the test statistic for this situation. c. If you have done everything correctly, the $p$ -value for the test is about 0.0127 . Based on this, make a conclusion for this situation. Write it in both statistical language and in words that someone with no training in statistics would understand.

Refer to Exercise $2 .$ Is the test described there a one-sided or a two-sided test?

Explain the difference between statistical significance and significance as used in everyday language.

Suppose a one-sided test for a proportion resulted in a $p$ -value of $0.03 .$ What would the $p$ -value be if the test were two-sided instead?

Suppose a two-sided test for a difference in two means resulted in a $p$ -value of 0.08 . a. Using the usual criterion for hypothesis testing, would we conclude that there was a difference in the population means? Explain. b. Suppose the test had been constructed as a one-sided test instead, and the evidence in the sample means was in the direction to support the alternative hypothesis. Using the usual criterion for hypothesis testing, would we be able to conclude that there was a difference in the population means? Explain.

Suppose you were given a hypothesized population mean, a sample mean, a sample standard deviation, and a sample size for a study involving a random sample from one population. What formula would you use for the test statistic?

In Example 23.4 , we showed that the Excel command NORMSDIST(z) gives the area below the standardized score $z$. Use Excel or an appropriate calculator, software, website, or table to find the $p$ -value for each of the following examples and case studies, taking into account whether the test is one-sided or two-sided: a. Example $23.3, z=2.17,$ two-sided test (using $z$, not t) b. Example $22.1, z=2.00,$ one-sided test c. Case Study $22.1, z=4.09,$ one-sided test

Suppose you wanted to see whether a training program helped raise students' scores on a standardized test. You administer the test to a random sample of students, give them the training program, then readminister the test. For each student, you record the increase (or decrease) in the test score from one time to the next. a. What would the null and alternative hypotheses be for this situation? b. Suppose the mean change for the sample was 10 points and the accompanying standard error was 4 points. What would be the standardized score that corresponded to the sample mean of 10 points? c. Based on the information in part (b), what would you conclude about this situation? (Assume the sample size is large and use $z$, not $t .$ )

Refer to the previous exercise. a. What explanation might be given for the increased scores, other than the fact that the training program had an impact? b. What would have been a better way to design the study in order to rule out the explanation you gave in part (a)?

On July 1, 1994, The Press of Atlantic City, NJ, had a headline reading, "Study: Female hormone makes mind keener" (p. A2). Here is part of the report: Halbreich said he tested 36 post-menopausal women before and after they started the estrogen therapy. He gave each one a battery of tests that measured such things as memory, hand-eye coordination, reflexes and the ability to learn new information and apply it to a problem. After estrogen therapy started, he said, there was a subtle but statistically significant increase in the mental scores of the patients. Explain what you learned about the study, in the context of the material in this chapter by reading this quote. Be sure to specify the hypotheses that were being tested and what you know about the statistical results.

Siegel (1993) reported a study in which she measured the effect of pet ownership on the use of medical care by the elderly. She interviewed 938 elderly adults. One of her results was reported as: "After demographics and health status were controlled for, subjects with pets had fewer total doctor contacts during the one-year period than those without pets (beta $=-.07, p < .05$ )" (p. 164). a. State the null and alternative hypotheses Siegel was testing. Be careful to distinguish between a population and a sample. b. State the conclusion you would make. Be explicit about the wording.

Refer to Exercise $12 .$ Here is another of the results reported by Siegel: "For subjects without a pet, having an above-average number of stressful life events resulted in about two more doctor contacts during the study year $(10.37 \text { vs. } 8.38, p<.005)$. In contrast, the number of stressful life events was not significantly related to doctor visits among subjects with a pet" (1993, p. 164). a. State the null and alternative hypotheses Siegel is testing in this passage. Notice that two tests are being performed; be sure to cover both. b. Pretend you are a news reporter, and write a short story describing the results reported in this exercise. Be sure you do not convey any misleading information. You are writing for a general audience, so do not use statistical jargon that would be unfamiliar to them.

Refer to Example 13.2 , in which we tested whether there was a relationship between gender and driving after drinking alcohol. Remember that the Supreme Court used the data to determine whether a law was justified. The law differentiated between the ages at which young males and young females could purchase $3.2 \%$ beer. Specify what a type 1 and a type 2 error would be for this example. Explain what the consequences of the two types of error would be in that context.

A CNN/ORC poll conducted in January, 2013 , asked 814 adults in the United States, "Which of the following do you think is the most pressing issue facing the country today?" and then presented seven choices, one of which was "The Economy." (Source: http://www.pollingreport.com/prioriti.htm, accessed July 16, 2013.) "The Economy" was chosen by $46 \%$ of the respondents. Suppose an unscrupulous politician wanted to show that the economy was not a pressing issue, and stated "Significantly fewer than half of adults think that the economy is a pressing issue." a. What are the null and alternative hypotheses the politician is implicitly testing in this quote? Make sure you specify the population value being tested and the population to which it applies. b. Using the results of the poll, find the value of the standardized score that would be used as the test statistic. c. If you answered parts (a) and (b) correctly, the $p$ -value for the test should be about 0.011 . Explain how the politician reached the conclusion stated in the quote. d. Do you think the statement made by the politician is justified? Explain.

In Example 23.3 , we tested whether the average fat lost from 1 year of dieting versus 1 year of exercise was equivalent. The study also measured lean body weight (muscle) lost or gained. The average for the 47 men who exercised was a gain of $0.1 \mathrm{kg}$, which can be thought of as a loss of -0.1 kg. The standard deviation was 2.2 kg. For the 42 men in the dieting group, there was an average loss of $1.3 \mathrm{kg},$ with a standard deviation of $2.6 \mathrm{kg}$. Test to see whether the average lean body mass lost (or gained) would be different for the population of men similar to the ones in this study. Specify all four steps of your hypothesis test. (Use z instead of t.)

Professors and other researchers use scholarly journals to publish the results of their research. However, only a small minority of the submitted papers is accepted for publication by the most prestigious journals. In many academic fields, there is a debate as to whether submitted papers written by women are treated as well as those submitted by men. In the January 1994 issue of European Science Editing (Maisonneuve, January 1994 ), there was a report on a study that examined this question. Here is part of that report: Similarly, no bias was found to exist at JAMA [lournal of the American Medical Association) in acceptance rates based on the gender of the corresponding author and the assigned editor. In the sample of 1851 articles considered in this study female editors used female reviewers more often than did male editors (P < 0.001). That quote actually contains the results of two separate hypothesis tests. Explain what the two sets of hypotheses tested are and what you can conclude about the $p$ -value for each set.

Use Excel or an appropriate calculator, software, website, or table to find the $p$ -value in each of the following situations. a. Alternative hypothesis is "greater than," $t=+2.5, \mathrm{df}=40$ b. Alternative hypothesis is "less than," $t=-2.5, \mathrm{df}=40$ c. Alternative hypothesis is "not equal," $t=2.5, \mathrm{df}=40$ d. Alternative hypothesis is "greater than" $z=+1.75$ e. Alternative hypothesis is "less than," $z=-1.75$ f. Alternative hypothesis is "not equal," $z=-1.75$

On January $30,1995,$ Time magazine reported the results of a poll of adult Americans, in which they were asked, "Have you ever driven a car when you probably had too much alcohol to drive safely?" The exact results were not given, but from the information provided we can guess at what they were. Of the 300 men who answered, 189 ( $63 \%$ ) said yes and 108 ( $36 \%$ ) said no. The remaining three weren't sure. Of the 300 women, 87 ( $29 \%$ ) said yes while $210(70 \%)$ said no, and the remaining three weren't sure. a. Ignoring those who said they weren't sure, there were 297 men asked, and 189 said yes, they had driven a car when they probably had too much alcohol. Does this provide statistically significant evidence that a majority of men in the population (that is, more than half) would say that they had driven a car when they probably had too much alcohol, if asked? Go through the four steps to test this hypothesis. b. For the test in part (a), you were instructed to perform a one-sided test. Why do you think it would make sense to do so in this situation? If you do not think it made sense, explain why not. c. Repeat parts (a) and (b) for the women. (Note that of the 297 women who answered, 87 said yes.) The following information is for Exercises 20 to 22 : In Example 23.3 , we tested to see whether dieters and exercisers had significantly different average fat loss. We concluded that they did because the difference for the samples under consideration was $1.8 \mathrm{kg}$, with a standard error of $0.83 \mathrm{kg}$ and a standardized score of $2.17 .$ Fat loss was higher for the dieters.

Construct an approximate $95 \%$ confidence interval for the population difference in mean fat loss. Consider the two different methods for presenting results: 1. the $p$ -value and conclusion from the hypothesis test or 2. the confidence interval. Which do you think is more informative? Explain.

Suppose the alternative hypothesis had been that men who exercised lost more fat on average than men who dieted. Would the null hypothesis have been rejected? Explain why or why not. If yes, give the $p$ -value that would have been used.

Suppose the alternative hypothesis had been that men who dieted lost more fat on average than men who exercised. Would the null hypothesis have been rejected? Explain why or why not. If yes, give the $p$ -value that would have been used. Exercises 23 to 29 refer to News Story and Original Source 1 , "Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation," (not available on the companion website). For this study, volunteers were randomly assigned to a meditation group (25 participants) or a control group (16 participants). The meditation group received an 8-week meditation training program. Both groups were given influenza shots and their antibodies were measured. This measurement was taken after the meditation group had been practicing meditation for about 8 weeks. The researchers also measured brain activity, but these exercises will not explore that part of the study.

On page 565 of the article we are told that "Participants were right-handed subjects who were employees of a biotechnology corporation in Madison, Wisconsin." To what population do you think the results of this study apply?

Participants were given psychological tests measuring positive and negative affect (mood) as well as anxiety at three time periods. Time 1 was before the meditation training. Time 2 was at the end of the 8 weeks of training, and Time 3 was 4 months later. One of the results reported is: There was a significant decrease in trait negative affect with the meditators showing less negative affect at Times 2 and 3 compared with their negative affect at Time $1[t(20)=2.27 \text { and } t(21)=2.45, \text { respectively, } p<.05 \text { for both }] .$ Subjects in the control group showed no change over time in negative affect ( $t<1$ ) (Davidson et al, $p .565$ ). The first sentence of the quote reports the results of two hypothesis tests for the meditators. Specify in words the null hypothesis for each of the two tests. They are the same except that one is for Time 2 and one is for Time 3. State each one separately, referring to what the time periods were. Make sure you don’t confuse the population with the sample and that you state the hypotheses using the correct one.

a. Refer to Exercise $24 .$ State the alternative hypothesis for each test. Explain whether you decided to use a one-sided or a two-sided test and why. b. Write the conclusion for the Time 2 test in statistical language and in plain English.

Refer to the quote in the Exercise 24 . Explain what is meant by the last sentence, "Subjects in the control group showed no change over time in negative affect $(t<1)$ " In particular, do you think the sample difference was exactly zero?

Another quote in the article is In response to the influenza vaccine, the meditators displayed a significantly greater rise in antibody titers from the 4 to 8 week blood draw compared with the controls $[t(33)=2.05, p<.05, \text { Figure } 5]$ (Davidson et al, p. 566 ). Specify in words the null hypothesis being tested. Make sure you don't confuse the population with the sample and that you state the hypothesis using the correct one.

Refer to the quote in Exercise 27 . Specify in words the alternative hypothesis being tested. Explain whether you decided to use a one-sided or a two-sided test and why.

Refer to the quote in Exercise 27 a. What is the meaning of the word significantly in the quote? b. Explain in plain English what the results of this test mean. Exercises 30 to 32 refer to News Story 14 and the journal article Original Source 14 , "Sex differences in the neural basis of emotional memories" (not available on the companion website). In this study, 12 men and 12 women were shown 96 pictures each. They rated the pictures for emotional intensity on a scale from 0 (no emotion) to 3 (intense emotion). Without being told in advance that this would happen, 3 weeks later they were shown the same set of pictures, interspersed with an additional 48 pictures, called "foils." They were asked which of the pictures they thought that they had seen previously, and if each one of those was just familiar or was distinctly remembered. Results for each picture were coded as 0 (forgotten). 1 (familiar), or 2 (remembered).

One of the results was "women rated significantly more pictures as highly arousing (rated 3) than did men $\left.[t(22)=2.41, P < 0.025]^{\prime \prime} \text { (Canli et al. }, 2002, \mathrm{p} .10790\right)$ a. Specify in words the null hypothesis being tested. Make sure you don't confuse the population with the sample and that you state the hypothesis using the correct one. b. Were the researchers using a one-sided or a two-sided alternative hypothesis? Explain how you know. c. Explain in words what is meant by $[t(22)=2.41, P<0.025]$ d. Is the use of the word significantly in the quote the statistical version or the English version or both? Explain how you know.

One of the results was "women had better memory for emotional pictures than men; pictures rated as most highly arousing were recognized significantly more often by women than by men as familiar $[t(20)=2.40, P < 0.05]$ or remembered $[t(20)=2.38, P < 0.05]^{\prime \prime}(\text { Canli et al., } 2002, \mathrm{p}$ 10790). There are two separate test results reported in this quote. a. Specify in words the null hypothesis being tested for each of the two tests. Make sure you don't confuse the population with the sample and that you state the hypothesis using the correct one. b. Were the researchers using a one-sided or a two-sided alternative hypothesis? Explain how you know. c. Explain in words what is meant by $[t(20)=2.38, P<0.05]$ d. Is the use of the word "significantly" in the quote the statistical version or the English version or both? Explain how you know.

One of the results was "there were no significant sex differences in memory for pictures rated less intense $(0-2)$ or in false-positive rates $(12 \text { and } 10 \%$ for women and men, respectively)" (Canli et al., 2002, p. 10790). a. What is meant by "false positive rates" in this example? b. Specify in words the null hypothesis being tested regarding false positives. Make sure you don't confuse the population with the sample and that you state the hypothesis using the correct one. c. Is the use of the word significant in the quote the statistical version or the English version or both? Explain how you know.

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• Introduction to Hypothesis Testing in R
• Testing of Hypothesis in R
• p-value: An Alternative way of Hypothesis Testing:
• t-test: Hypothesis Testing of Population Mean when Population Standard Deviation is Unknown:
• Two Samples Tests: Hypothesis Testing for the difference between two population means
• Hypothesis Testing for Equality of Population Variances
• Let’s Look at some Case studies:
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Hypothesis Testing in R- Introduction Examples and Case Study

– By Dr. Masood H. Siddiqui, Professor & Dean (Research) at Jaipuria Institute of Management, Lucknow

The premise of Data Analytics is based on the philosophy of the “ Data-Driven Decision Making ” that univocally states that decision-making based on data has less probability of error than those based on subjective judgement and gut-feeling. So, we require data to make decisions and to answer the business/functional questions. Data may be collected from each and every unit/person, connected with the problem-situation (totality related to the situation). This is known as Census or Complete Enumeration and the ‘totality’ is known as Population . Obv.iously, this will generally give the most optimum results with maximum correctness but this may not be always possible. Actually, it is rare to have access to information from all the members connected with the situation. So, due to practical considerations, we take up a representative subset from the population, known as Sample . A sample is a representative in the sense that it is expected to exhibit the properties of the population, from where it has been drawn. 

So, we have evidence (data) from the sample and we need to decide for the population on the basis of that data from the sample i.e. inferring about the population on the basis of a sample. This concept is known as Statistical Inference . 

Before going into details, we should be clear about certain terms and concepts that will be useful:

Parameter and Statistic

Parameters are unknown constants that effectively define the population distribution , and in turn, the population , e.g. population mean (µ), population standard deviation (σ), population proportion (P) etc. Statistics are the values characterising the sample i.e. characteristics of the sample. They are actually functions of sample values e. g. sample mean (x̄), sample standard deviation (s), sample proportion (p) etc. 

Sampling Distribution

A large number of samples may be drawn from a population. Each sample may provide a value of sample statistic, so there will be a distribution of sample statistic value from all the possible samples i.e. frequency distribution of sample statistic . This is better known as Sampling distribution of the sample statistic . Alternatively, the sample statistic is a random variable , being a function of sample values (which are random variables themselves). The probability distribution of the sample statistic is known as sampling distribution of sample statistic. Just like any other distribution, sampling distribution may partially be described by its mean and standard deviation . The standard deviation of sampling distribution of a sample statistic is better known as the Standard Error of the sample statistic. 

Standard Error

It is a measure of the extent of variation among different values of statistics from different possible samples. Higher the standard error, higher is the variation among different possible values of statistics. Hence, less will be the confidence that we may place on the value of the statistic for estimation purposes. Hence, the sample statistic having a lower value of standard error is supposed to be better for estimation of the population parameter. 

1(a). A sample of size ‘n’ has been drawn for a normal population N (µ, σ). We are considering sample mean (x̄) as the sample statistic. Then, the sampling distribution of sample statistic x̄ will follow Normal Distribution with mean µ x̄ = µ and standard error σ x̄ = σ/ √ n.

Even if the population is not following the Normal Distribution but for a large sample (n = large), the sampling distribution of x̄ will approach to (approximated by) normal distribution with mean µ x̄ = µ and standard error σ x̄ = σ/ √ n, as per the Central Limit Theorem . 

(b). A sample of size ‘n’ has been drawn for a normal population N (µ, σ), but population standard deviation σ is unknown, so in this case σ will be estimated by sample standard deviation(s). Then, sampling distribution of sample statistic x̄ will follow the student’s t distribution (with degree of freedom = n-1) having mean µ x̄ = µ and standard error σ x̄ = s/ √ n.

2. When we consider proportions for categorical data. Sampling distribution of sample proportion p =x/n (where x = Number of success out of a total of n) will follow Normal Distribution with mean µ p = P and standard error σ p = √( PQ/n), (where Q = 1-P). This is under the condition that n is large such that both np and nq should be minimum 5.

Statistical Inference

Statistical Inference encompasses two different but related problems:

1. Knowing about the population-values on the basis of data from the sample. This is known as the problem of Estimation . This is a common problem in business decision-making because of lack of complete information and uncertainty but by using sample information, the estimate will be based on the concept of data based decision making. Here, the concept of probability is used through sampling distribution to deal with the uncertainty. If sample statistics is used to estimate the population parameter , then in that situation that is known as the Estimator; {like sample mean (x̄) to estimate population mean µ, sample proportion (p) to estimate population proportion (P) etc.}. A particular value of the estimator for a given sample is known as Estimate . For example, if we want to estimate average sales of 1000+ outlets of a retail chain and we have taken a sample of 40 outlets and sample mean ( estimator ) x̄ is 40000. Then the estimate will be 40000.

There are two types of estimation:

• Point Estimation : Single value/number of the estimator is used to estimate unknown population parameters. The example is given above. 
• Confidence Interval/Interval Estimation : Interval Estimate gives two values of sample statistic/estimator, forming an interval or range, within which an unknown population is expected to lie. This interval estimate provides confidence with the interval vis-à-vis the population parameter. For example: 95% confidence interval for population mean sale is (35000, 45000) i.e. we are 95% confident that interval estimate will contain the population parameter.

2. Examining the declaration/perception/claim about the population for its correctness on the basis of sample data. This is known as the problem of Significant Testing or Testing of Hypothesis . This belongs to the Confirmatory Data Analysis , as to confirm or otherwise the hypothesis developed in the earlier Exploratory Data Analysis stage.

One Sample Tests

z-test – Hypothesis Testing of Population Mean when Population Standard Deviation is known:

Hypothesis testing in R starts with a claim or perception of the population. Hypothesis may be defined as a claim/ positive declaration/ conjecture about the population parameter. If hypothesis defines the distribution completely, it is known as Simple Hypothesis, otherwise Composite Hypothesis . 

Hypothesis may be classified as: 

Null Hypothesis (H 0 ): Hypothesis to be tested is known as Null Hypothesis (H 0 ). It is so known because it assumes no relationship or no difference from the hypothesized value of population parameter(s) or to be nullified. 

Alternative Hypothesis (H 1 ): The hypothesis opposite/complementary to the Null Hypothesis .

Note: Here, two points are needed to be considered. First, both the hypotheses are to be constructed only for the population parameters. Second, since H 0 is to be tested so it is H 0 only that may be rejected or failed to be rejected (retained).

Hypothesis Testing: Hypothesis testing a rule or statistical process that may be resulted in either rejecting or failing to reject the null hypothesis (H 0 ).

The Five Steps Process of Hypothesis Testing

Here, we take an example of Testing of Mean:

1. Setting up the Hypothesis:

This step is used to define the problem after considering the business situation and deciding the relevant hypotheses H 0 and H 1 , after mentioning the hypotheses in the business language.

We are considering the random variable X = Quarterly sales of the sales executive working in a big FMCG company. Here, we assume that sales follow normal distribution with mean µ (unknown) and standard deviation σ (known) . The value of the population parameter (population mean) to be tested be µ 0 (Hypothesised Value).

Here the hypothesis may be:

H 0 : µ = µ 0  or µ ≤ µ 0  or µ ≥ µ 0  (here, the first one is Simple Hypothesis , rest two variants are composite hypotheses ) 

H 1 : µ > µ 0 or

H 1 : µ < µ 0 or

H 1 : µ ≠ µ 0 

(Here, all three variants are Composite Hypothesis )

2. Defining Test and Test Statistic:

The test is the statistical rule/process of deciding to ‘reject’ or ‘fail to reject’ (retain) the H0. It consists of dividing the sample space (the totality of all the possible outcomes) into two complementary parts. One part, providing the rejection of H 0 , known as Critical Region . The other part, representing the failing to reject H 0 situation , is known as Acceptance Region .

The logic is, since we have evidence only from the sample, we use sample data to decide about the rejection/retaining of the hypothesised value. Sample, in principle, can never be a perfect replica of the population so we do expect that there will be variation in between population and sample values. So the issue is not the difference but actually the magnitude of difference . Suppose, we want to test the claim that the average quarterly sale of the executive is 75k vs sale is below 75k. Here, the hypothesised value for the population mean is µ 0 =75 i.e.

H 0 : µ = 75

H 1 : µ < 75.

Suppose from a sample, we get a value of sample mean x̄=73. Here, the difference is too small to reject the claim under H 0 since the chances (probability) of happening of such a random sample is quite large so we will retain H 0 . Suppose, in some other situation, we get a sample with a sample mean x̄=33. Here, the difference between the sample mean and hypothesised population mean is too large. So the claim under H 0 may be rejected as the chance of having such a sample for this population is quite low.

So, there must be some dividing value (s) that differentiates between the two decisions: rejection (critical region) and retention (acceptance region), this boundary value is known as the critical value .

Type I and Type II Error:

There are two types of situations (H 0 is true or false) which are complementary to each other and two types of complementary decisions (Reject H 0 or Failing to Reject H 0 ). So we have four types of cases:

So, the two possible errors in hypothesis testing can be:

Type I Error = [Reject H 0 when H 0 is true]

Type II Error = [Fails to reject H 0 when H 0 is false].

Type I Error is also known as False Positive and Type II Error is also known as False Negative in the language of Business Analytics.

Since these two are probabilistic events, so we measure them using probabilities:

α = Probability of committing Type I error = P [Reject H 0 / H 0 is true] 

β = Probability of committing Type II error = P [Fails to reject H 0 / H 0 is false].

For a good testing procedure, both types of errors should be low (minimise α and β) but simultaneous minimisation of both the errors is not possible because they are interconnected. If we minimize one, the other will increase and vice versa. So, one error is fixed and another is tried to be minimised. Normally α is fixed and we try to minimise β. If Type I error is critical, α is fixed at a low value (allowing β to take relatively high value) otherwise at relatively high value (to minimise β to a low value, Type II error being critical).

Example: In Indian Judicial System we have H 0 : Under trial is innocent. Here, Type I Error = An innocent person is sentenced, while Type II Error = A guilty person is set free. Indian (Anglo Saxon) Judicial System considers type I error to be critical so it will have low α for this case.

Power of the test = 1- β = P [Reject H 0 / H 0 is false].

Higher the power of the test, better it is considered and we look for the Most Powerful Test since power of test can be taken as the probability that the test will detect a deviation from H 0 given that the deviation exists.

One Tailed and Two Tailed Tests of Hypothesis:

H 0 : µ ≤ µ 0  

H 1 : µ > µ 0 

When x̄ is significantly above the hypothesized population mean µ 0 then H 0 will be rejected and the test used will be right tailed test (upper tailed test) since the critical region (denoting rejection of H 0 will be in the right tail of the normal curve (representing sampling distribution of sample statistic x̄). (The critical region is shown as a shaded portion in the figure).

H 0 : µ ≥ µ 0

H 1 : µ < µ 0 

In this case, if x̄ is significantly below the hypothesised population mean µ 0 then H 0 will be rejected and the test used will be the left tailed test (lower tailed test) since the critical region (denoting rejection of H 0 ) will be in the left tail of the normal curve (representing sampling distribution of sample statistic x̄). (The critical region is shown as a shaded portion in the figure).

These two tests are also known as One-tailed tests as there will be a critical region in only one tail of the sampling distribution.

H 0 : µ = µ 0

H 1 : µ ≠ µ 0

When x̄ is significantly different (significantly higher or lower than) from the hypothesised population mean µ 0 , then H 0 will be rejected. In this case, the two tailed test will be applicable because there will be two critical regions (denoting rejection of H 0 ) on both the tails of the normal curve (representing sampling distribution of sample statistic x̄). (The critical regions are shown as shaded portions in the figure). 

Hypothesis Testing using Standardized Scale: Here, instead of measuring sample statistic (variable) in the original unit, standardised value is taken (better known as test statistic ). So, the comparison will be between observed value of test statistic (estimated from sample), and critical value of test statistic (obtained from relevant theoretical probability distribution).

Here, since population standard deviation (σ) is known, so the test statistics :

Z=  (x- µx̄ x )/σ x̄ = (x- µ 0 )/(σ/√n)  follows Standard Normal Distribution N (0, 1).

3.Deciding the Criteria for Rejection or otherwise:

As discussed, hypothesis testing means deciding a rule for rejection/retention of H 0 . Here, the critical region decides rejection of H 0 and there will be a value, known as Critical Value , to define the boundary of the critical region/acceptance region. The size (probability/area) of a critical region is taken as α . Here, α may be known as Significance Level , the level at which hypothesis testing is performed. It is equal to type I error , as discussed earlier.

Suppose, α has been decided as 5%, so the critical value of test statistic (Z) will be +1.645 (for right tail test), -1.645 (for left tail test). For the two tails test, the critical value will be -1.96 and +1.96 (as per the Standard Normal Distribution Z table). The value of α may be chosen as per the criticality of type I and type II. Normally, the value of α is taken as 5% in most of the analytical situations (Fisher, 1956). 

4. Taking sample, data collection and estimating the observed value of test statistic:

In this stage, a proper sample of size n is taken and after collecting the data, the values of sample mean (x̄) and the observed value of test statistic Z obs is being estimated, as per the test statistic formula.

5. Taking the Decision to reject or otherwise:

On comparing the observed value of Test statistic with that of the critical value, we may identify whether the observed value lies in the critical region (reject H 0 ) or in the acceptance region (do not reject H 0 ) and decide accordingly.

• Right Tailed Test:          If Z obs > 1.645                   : Reject H 0 at 5% Level of Significance.
• Left Tailed Test:            If Z obs < -1.645                  : Reject H 0 at 5% Level of Significance.
• Two Tailed Test:    If Z obs > 1.96 or If Z obs < -1.96  : Reject H 0 at 5% Level of Significance.

There is an alternative approach for hypothesis testing, this approach is very much used in all the software packages. It is known as probability value/ prob. value/ p-value. It gives the probability of getting a value of statistic this far or farther from the hypothesised value if H0 is true. This denotes how likely is the result that we have observed. It may be further explained as the probability of observing the test statistic if H 0 is true i.e. what are the chances in support of occurrence of H 0 . If p-value is small, it means there are less chances (rare case) in favour of H 0 occuring, as the difference between a sample value and hypothesised value is significantly large so H 0 may be rejected, otherwise it may be retained.

If p-value < α       : Reject H 0

If p-value ≥ α : Fails to Reject H 0

So, it may be mentioned that the level of significance (α) is the maximum threshold for p-value. It should be noted that p-value (two tailed test) = 2* p-value (one tailed test). 

Note: Though the application of z-test requires the ‘Normality Assumption’ for the parent population with known standard deviation/ variance but if sample is large (n>30), the normality assumption for the parent population may be relaxed, provided population standard deviation/variance is known (as per Central Limit Theorem).

As we discussed in the previous case, for testing of population mean, we assume that sample has been drawn from the population following normal distribution mean µ and standard deviation σ. In this case test statistic Z = (x- µ 0 )/(σ/√n)  ~ Standard Normal Distribution N (0, 1). But in the situations where population s.d. σ is not known (it is a very common situation in all the real life business situations), we estimate population s.d. (σ) by sample s.d. (s).

Hence the corresponding test statistic: 

t=  (x- µx̄ x )/σ x̄ = (x- µ 0 )/(s/√n) follows Student’s t distribution with (n-1) degrees of freedom. One degree of freedom has been sacrificed for estimating population s.d. (σ) by sample s.d. (s).

Everything else in the testing process remains the same. 

t-test is not much affected if assumption of normality is violated provided data is slightly asymmetrical (near to symmetry) and data-set does not contain outliers.  

t-distribution:

The Student’s t-distribution, is much similar to the normal distribution. It is a symmetric distribution (bell shaped distribution). In general Student’s t distribution is flatter i.e. having heavier tails. Shape of t distribution changes with degrees of freedom (exact distribution) and becomes approximately close to Normal distribution for large n. 

In many business decision making situations, decision makers are interested in comparison of two populations i.e. interested in examining the difference between two population parameters. Example: comparing sales of rural and urban outlets, comparing sales before the advertisement and after advertisement, comparison of salaries in between male and female employees, comparison of salary before and after joining the data science courses etc.

Independent Samples and Dependent (Paired Samples):

Depending on method of collection data for the two samples, samples may be termed as independent or dependent samples. If two samples are drawn independently without any relation (may be from different units/respondents in the two samples), then it is said that samples are drawn independently . If samples are related or paired or having two observations at different points of time on the same unit/respondent, then the samples are said to be dependent or paired .  This approach (paired samples) enables us to compare two populations after controlling the extraneous effect on them.  

Testing the Difference Between Means: Independent Samples

Two samples z test:.

We have two populations, both following Normal populations as N (µ 1 , σ 1 ) and N (µ 2 , σ 2 ). We want to test the Null Hypothesis:

H 0 : µ 1 – µ 2 = θ or µ 1 – µ 2 ≤ θ or µ 1 – µ 2 ≥ θ 

Alternative hypothesis:

H 1 : µ 1 – µ 2 > θ or

H 0 : µ 1 – µ 2 < θ or

H 1 : µ 1 – µ 2 ≠ θ 

(where θ may take any value as per the situation or θ =0). 

Two samples of size n 1 and n 2 have been taken randomly from the two normal populations respectively and the corresponding sample means are x̄ 1 and x̄ 2 .

Here, we are not interested in individual population parameters (means) but in the difference of population means (µ 1 – µ 2 ). So, the corresponding statistic is = (x̄ 1 – x̄ 2 ).

According, sampling distribution of the statistic (x̄ 1 – x̄ 2 ) will follow Normal distribution with mean µ x̄ = µ 1 – µ 2 and standard error σ x̄ = √ (σ² 1 / n 1 + σ² 2 / n 2 ). So, the corresponding Test Statistics will be: 

Other things remaining the same as per the One Sample Tests (as explained earlier).

Two Independent Samples t-Test (when Population Standard Deviations are Unknown):

Here, for testing the difference of two population mean, we assume that samples have been drawn from populations following Normal Distributions, but it is a very common situation that population standard deviations (σ 1 and σ 2 ) are unknown. So they are estimated by sample standard deviations (s 1 and s 2 ) from the respective two samples.

Here, two situations are possible:

(a) Population Standard Deviations are unknown but equal:

In this situation (where σ 1 and σ 2 are unknown but assumed to be equal), sampling distribution of the statistic (x̄ 1 – x̄ 2 ) will follow Student’s t distribution with mean µ x̄ = µ 1 – µ 2 and standard error σ x̄ = √ Sp 2 (1/ n 1 + 1/ n 2 ).  Where Sp 2 is the pooled estimate, given by:

Sp 2 = (n 1 -1) S 1 2 +(n 2 -1) S 2 2 /(n 1 +n 2 -2)

So, the corresponding Test Statistics will be: 

t =  {(x̄ 1 – x̄ 2 ) – (µ 1 – µ 2 )}/{√ Sp 2 (1/n 1 +1/n 2 )}

Here, t statistic will follow t distribution with d.f. (n 1 +n 2 -2).

(b) Population Standard Deviations are unknown but unequal:

In this situation (where σ 1 and σ 2 are unknown and unequal).

Then the sampling distribution of the statistic (x̄ 1 – x̄ 2 ) will follow Student’s t distribution with mean µ x̄ = µ 1 – µ 2 and standard error Se =√ (s² 1 / n 1 + s² 2 / n 2 ). 

t =  {(x̄ 1 – x̄ 2 ) – (µ 1 – µ 2 )}/{√ (s2 1 /n 1 +s2 2 /n 2 )}

The test statistic will follow Student’s t distribution with degrees of freedom (rounding down to nearest integers):

As discussed in the aforementioned two cases, it is important to figure out whether the two population variances are equal or otherwise. For this purpose, F test can be employed as:

H 0 : σ² 1 = σ² 2 and H 1 : σ² 1 ≠ σ² 2

Two samples of sizes n 1 and n 2 have been drawn from two populations respectively. They provide sample standard deviations s 1 and s 2 . The test statistic is F =  s 1 ²/s 2 ²

The test statistic will follow F-distribution with (n 1 -1) df for numerator and (n 2 -1) df for denominator.

Note: There are many other tests that are applied for this purpose.

Paired Sample t-Test (Testing Difference between Means with Dependent Samples):

As discussed earlier, in the situation of Before-After Tests, to examine the impact of any intervention like a training program, health program, any campaign to change status, we have two set of observations (x i and y i ) on the same test unit (respondent or units) before and after the program. Each sample has “n” paired observations. The Samples are said to be dependent or paired.

Here, we consider a random variable: d i = x i – y i . 

Accordingly, the sampling distribution of the sample statistic (sample mean of the differentces d i ’s) will follow Student’s t distribution with mean = θ and standard error = sd/ √ n, where sd is the sample standard deviation of d i ’s.

Hence, the corresponding test statistic: t = (d̅- θ)/sd/√n will follow t distribution with (n-1).

As we have observed, paired t-test is actually one sample test since two samples got converted into one sample of differences. If ‘Two Independent Samples t-Test’ and ‘Paired t-test’ are applied on the same data set then two tests will give much different results because in case of Paired t-Test, standard error will be quite low as compared to Two Independent Samples t-Test. The Paired t-Test is applied essentially on one sample while the earlier one is applied on two samples. The result of the difference in standard error is that t-statistic will take larger value in case of ‘Paired t-Test’ in comparison to the ‘Two Independent Samples t-Test and finally p-values get affected accordingly. 

t-Test in SPSS:

One sample t-test.

• Analyze => Compare Means => One-Sample T-Test to open relevant dialogue box.
• Test variable (variable under consideration) in the Test variable(s) box and hypothesised value µ 0 = 75 (for example) in the Test Value box are to be entered.
• Press Ok to have the output. 

Here, we consider the example of Ventura Sales, and want to examine the perception that average sales in the first quarter is 75 (thousand) vs it is not. So, the Hypotheses:

Null Hypothesis H 0 : µ=75  

Alternative Hypothesis H 1 : µ≠75

One-Sample Statistics

Descriptive table showing the sample size n = 60, sample mean x̄=72.02, sample sd s=9.724.

One-Sample Test

One Sample Test Table shows the result of the t-test. Here, test statistic value (from the sample) is t = -2.376 and the corresponding p-value (2 tailed) = 0.021 <0.05. So, H 0 got rejected and it can be said that the claim of average first quarterly sales being 75 (thousand) does not hold. 

Two Independent Samples t-Test

• Analyze => Compare Means => Independent-Samples T-Test to open the dialogue box.
• Enter the Test variable (variable under consideration) in the Test Variable(s) box and variable categorising the groups in the Grouping Variable box.
• Define the groups by clicking on Define Groups and enter the relevant numeric-codes into the relevant groups in the Define Groups sub-dialogue box. Press Continue to return back to the main dialogue box.

We continue with the example of Ventura Sales, and want to compare the average first quarter sales with respect to Urban Outlets and Rural Outlets (two independent samples/groups). Here, the claim is that urban outlets are giving lower sales as compared to rural outlets. So, the Hypotheses:

H 0 : µ 1 – µ 2 = 0 or µ 1 = µ 2   (Where, µ 1 = Population Mean Sale of Urban Outlets and µ 2 = Population Mean Sale of Rural Outlets)

H 1 : µ 1 < µ 2  

Group Statistics

Descriptive table showing the sample sizes n 1 =37 and n 2 =23, sample means x̄ 1 =67.86 and x̄ 2 =78.70, sample standard deviations s 1 =8.570 and s 2 = 7.600.

The below table is the Independent Sample Test Table, proving all the relevant test statistics and p-values.  Here, both the outputs for Equal Variance (assumed) and Unequal Variance (assumed) are presented.

Independent Samples Test

So, we have to figure out whether we should go for ‘equal variance’ case or for ‘unequal variances’ case. 

Here, Levene’s Test for Equality of Variances has to be applied for this purpose with the hypotheses: H 0 : σ² 1 = σ² 2 and H 1 : σ² 1 ≠ σ² 2 . The p-value (Sig) = 0.460 >0.05, so we can’t reject (so retained) H 0 . Hence, variances can be assumed to be equal. 

So, “Equal Variances assumed” case is to be taken up. Accordingly, the value of t statistic = -4.965 and the p-value (two tailed) = 0.000, so the p-value (one tailed) = 0.000/2 = 0.000 <0.05. Hence, H 0 got rejected and it can be said that urban outlets are giving lower sales in the first quarter. So, the claim stands.

Paired t-Test (Testing Difference between Means with Dependent Samples):

•   Analyze => Compare Means => Paired-Samples T-Test to open the dialogue box.
• Enter the relevant pair of variables (paired samples) in the Paired Variables box.
• After entering the paired samples, press Ok to have the output.

We continue with the example of Ventura Sales, and want to compare the average first quarter sales with the second quarter sales. Some sales promotion interventions were executed with an expectation of increasing sales in the second quarter. So, the Hypotheses:

H 0 : µ 1 = µ 2 (Where, µ 1 = Population Mean Sale of Quarter-I and µ 2 = Population Mean Sale of Quarter-II)

H 1 : µ 1 < µ 2 (representing the increase of sales i.e. implying the success of sales interventions)

Paired Samples Statistics

Descriptive table showing the sample size n=60, sample means x̄ 1 =72.02 and x̄ 2 =72.43.

As per the following output table (Paired Samples Test), sample mean of differences d̅ = -0.417 with standard deviation of differences sd = 8.011 and value of t statistic = -0.403. Accordingly, the p-value (two tailed) = 0.688, so the p-value (one tailed) = 0.688/2 = 0.344 > 0.05. So, there have not been sufficient reasons to Reject H 0 i.e. H 0 should be retained. So, the effectiveness (success) of the sales promotion interventions is doubtful i.e. it didn’t result in significant increase in sales, provided all other extraneous factors remain the same.

Paired Samples Test   

t-Test Application One Sample

Experience Marketing Services reported that the typical American spends a mean of 144 minutes (2.4 hours) per day accessing the Internet via a mobile device. (Source: The 2014 Digital Marketer, available at ex.pn/1kXJifX.) To test the validity of this statement, you select a sample of 30 friends and family. The result for the time spent per day accessing the Internet via a mobile device (in minutes) are stored in Internet_Mobile_Time.csv file.

Is there evidence that the populations mean time spent per day accessing the Internet via a mobile device is different from 144 minutes? Use the p-value approach and a level of significance of 0.05

What assumption about the population distribution is needed to conduct the test in A?

Solution In R

[1] 1.224674

[1] 0.2305533

[1] “Accepted”

Independent t-test two sample

A hotel manager looks to enhance the initial impressions that hotel guests have when they check-in. Contributing to initial impressions is the time it takes to deliver a guest’s luggage to the room after check-in. A random sample of 20 deliveries on a particular day was selected each from Wing A and Wing B of the hotel. The data collated is given in Luggage.csv file. Analyze the data and determine whether there is a difference in the mean delivery times in the two wings of the hotel. (use alpha = 0.05).

    Two Sample t-test data:  WingA and WingB t = 5.1615, df = 38, p-value = 4.004e-06 alternative hypothesis: true difference in means is greater than 0 95 percent confidence interval: 1.531895   Inf sample estimates: mean of x mean of y  10.3975 8.1225 > t.test(WingA,WingB)    Welch Two Sample t-test

t = 5.1615, df = 37.957, p-value = 8.031e-06 alternative hypothesis: true difference in means is not equal to 0 95 per cent confidence interval: 1.38269 3.16731 sample estimates: mean of x mean of y  10.3975 8.1225

Case Study- Titan Insurance Company

The Titan Insurance Company has just installed a new incentive payment scheme for its lift policy salesforce. It wants to have an early view of the success or failure of the new scheme. Indications are that the sales force is selling more policies, but sales always vary in an unpredictable pattern from month to month and it is not clear that the scheme has made a significant difference.

Life Insurance companies typically measure the monthly output of a salesperson as the total sum assured for the policies sold by that person during the month. For example, suppose salesperson X has, in the month, sold seven policies for which the sums assured are £1000, £2500, £3000, £5000, £10000, £35000. X’s output for the month is the total of these sums assured, £61,500.

Titan’s new scheme is that the sales force receives low regular salaries but are paid large bonuses related to their output (i.e. to the total sum assured of policies sold by them). The scheme is expensive for the company, but they are looking for sales increases which more than compensate. The agreement with the sales force is that if the scheme does not at least break even for the company, it will be abandoned after six months.

The scheme has now been in operation for four months. It has settled down after fluctuations in the first two months due to the changeover.

To test the effectiveness of the scheme, Titan has taken a random sample of 30 salespeople measured their output in the penultimate month before changeover and then measured it in the fourth month after the changeover (they have deliberately chosen months not too close to the changeover). Ta ble 1 shows t he outputs of the salespeople in Table 1

Data preparation

Since the given data are in 000, it will be better to convert them in thousands. Problem 1 Describe the five per cent significance test you would apply to these data to determine whether the new scheme has significantly raised outputs? What conclusion does the test lead to? Solution: It is asked that whether the new scheme has significantly raised the output, it is an example of the one-tailed t-test. Note: Two-tailed test could have been used if it was asked “new scheme has significantly changed the output” Mean of amount assured before the introduction of scheme = 68450 Mean of amount assured after the introduction of scheme = 72000 Difference in mean = 72000 – 68450 = 3550 Let, μ1 = Average sums assured by salesperson BEFORE changeover. μ2 = Average sums assured by salesperson AFTER changeover. H0: μ1 = μ2  ; μ2 – μ1 = 0 HA: μ1 < μ2   ; μ2 – μ1 > 0 ; true difference of means is greater than zero. Since population standard deviation is unknown, paired sample t-test will be used.

Since p-value (=0.06529) is higher than 0.05, we accept (fail to reject) NULL hypothesis. The new scheme has NOT significantly raised outputs .

Problem 2 Suppose it has been calculated that for Titan to break even, the average output must increase by £5000. If this figure is an alternative hypothesis, what is: (a)  The probability of a type 1 error? (b)  What is the p-value of the hypothesis test if we test for a difference of $5000? (c)   Power of the test: Solution: 2.a.  The probability of a type 1 error? Solution: Probability of Type I error = significant level = 0.05 or 5% 2.b.  What is the p-value of the hypothesis test if we test for a difference of $5000? Solution: Let  μ2 = Average sums assured by salesperson AFTER changeover. μ1 = Average sums assured by salesperson BEFORE changeover. μd = μ2 – μ1   H0: μd ≤ 5000 HA: μd > 5000 This is a right tail test.

P-value = 0.6499 2.c. Power of the test. Solution: Let  μ2 = Average sums assured by salesperson AFTER changeover. μ1 = Average sums assured by salesperson BEFORE changeover. μd = μ2 – μ1   H0: μd = 4000 HA: μd > 0

H0 will be rejected if test statistics > t_critical. With α = 0.05 and df = 29, critical value for t statistic (or t_critical ) will be   1.699127. Hence, H0 will be rejected for test statistics ≥  1.699127. Hence, H0 will be rejected if for  𝑥̅ ≥ 4368.176

Graphically,

      Probability (type II error) is P(Do not reject H0 | H0 is false)       Our NULL hypothesis is TRUE at μd = 0 so that  H0: μd = 0 ; HA: μd > 0       Probability of type II error at μd = 5000

= P (Do not reject H0 | H0 is false) = P (Do not reject H0 | μd = 5000)  = P (𝑥̅ < 4368.176 | μd = 5000) = P (t <  | μd = 5000) = P (t < -0.245766) = 0.4037973

R Code: Now,  β=0.5934752, Power of test = 1- β = 1- 0.5934752 = 0.4065248

• While performing Hypothesis-Testing, Hypotheses can’t be proved or disproved since we have evidence from sample (s) only. At most, Hypotheses may be rejected or retained.
• Use of the term “accept H 0 ” in place of “do not reject” should be avoided even if the test statistic falls in the Acceptance Region or p-value ≥ α. This simply means that the sample does not provide sufficient statistical evidence to reject the H 0 . Since we have tried to nullify (reject) H 0 but we haven’t found sufficient support to do so, we may retain it but it won’t be accepted.
• Confidence Interval (Interval Estimation) can also be used for testing of hypotheses. If the hypothesis parameter falls within the confidence interval, we do not reject H 0 . Otherwise, if the hypothesised parameter falls outside the confidence interval i.e. confidence interval does not contain the hypothesized parameter, we reject H 0 .
• Downey, A. B. (2014). Think Stat: Exploratory Data Analysis , 2 nd Edition, Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media Inc
• Fisher, R. A. (1956). Statistical Methods and Scientific Inference , New York: Hafner Publishing Company.
• Hogg, R. V.; McKean, J. W. & Craig, A. T. (2013). Introduction to Mathematical Statistics , 7 th Edition, New Delhi: Pearson India.
• IBM SPSS Statistics. (2020). IBM Corporation. 
• Levin, R. I.; Rubin, D. S; Siddiqui, M. H. & Rastogi, S. (2017). Statistics for Management , 8 th Edition, New Delhi: Pearson India. 

If you want to get a detailed understanding of Hypothesis testing, you can take up this hypothesis testing in machine learning course. This course will also provide you with a certificate at the end of the course.

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Methodology

• What Is a Case-Control Study? | Definition & Examples

What Is a Case-Control Study? | Definition & Examples

Published on February 4, 2023 by Tegan George . Revised on June 22, 2023.

A case-control study is an experimental design that compares a group of participants possessing a condition of interest to a very similar group lacking that condition. Here, the participants possessing the attribute of study, such as a disease, are called the “case,” and those without it are the “control.”

It’s important to remember that the case group is chosen because they already possess the attribute of interest. The point of the control group is to facilitate investigation, e.g., studying whether the case group systematically exhibits that attribute more than the control group does.

Table of contents

When to use a case-control study, examples of case-control studies, advantages and disadvantages of case-control studies, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions.

Case-control studies are a type of observational study often used in fields like medical research, environmental health, or epidemiology. While most observational studies are qualitative in nature, case-control studies can also be quantitative , and they often are in healthcare settings. Case-control studies can be used for both exploratory and explanatory research , and they are a good choice for studying research topics like disease exposure and health outcomes.

A case-control study may be a good fit for your research if it meets the following criteria.

• Data on exposure (e.g., to a chemical or a pesticide) are difficult to obtain or expensive.
• The disease associated with the exposure you’re studying has a long incubation period or is rare or under-studied (e.g., AIDS in the early 1980s).
• The population you are studying is difficult to contact for follow-up questions (e.g., asylum seekers).

Retrospective cohort studies use existing secondary research data, such as medical records or databases, to identify a group of people with a common exposure or risk factor and to observe their outcomes over time. Case-control studies conduct primary research , comparing a group of participants possessing a condition of interest to a very similar group lacking that condition in real time.

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Case-control studies are common in fields like epidemiology, healthcare, and psychology.

You would then collect data on your participants’ exposure to contaminated drinking water, focusing on variables such as the source of said water and the duration of exposure, for both groups. You could then compare the two to determine if there is a relationship between drinking water contamination and the risk of developing a gastrointestinal illness. Example: Healthcare case-control study You are interested in the relationship between the dietary intake of a particular vitamin (e.g., vitamin D) and the risk of developing osteoporosis later in life. Here, the case group would be individuals who have been diagnosed with osteoporosis, while the control group would be individuals without osteoporosis.

You would then collect information on dietary intake of vitamin D for both the cases and controls and compare the two groups to determine if there is a relationship between vitamin D intake and the risk of developing osteoporosis. Example: Psychology case-control study You are studying the relationship between early-childhood stress and the likelihood of later developing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Here, the case group would be individuals who have been diagnosed with PTSD, while the control group would be individuals without PTSD.

Case-control studies are a solid research method choice, but they come with distinct advantages and disadvantages.

Advantages of case-control studies

• Case-control studies are a great choice if you have any ethical considerations about your participants that could preclude you from using a traditional experimental design .
• Case-control studies are time efficient and fairly inexpensive to conduct because they require fewer subjects than other research methods .
• If there were multiple exposures leading to a single outcome, case-control studies can incorporate that. As such, they truly shine when used to study rare outcomes or outbreaks of a particular disease .

Disadvantages of case-control studies

• Case-control studies, similarly to observational studies, run a high risk of research biases . They are particularly susceptible to observer bias , recall bias , and interviewer bias.
• In the case of very rare exposures of the outcome studied, attempting to conduct a case-control study can be very time consuming and inefficient .
• Case-control studies in general have low internal validity  and are not always credible.

Case-control studies by design focus on one singular outcome. This makes them very rigid and not generalizable , as no extrapolation can be made about other outcomes like risk recurrence or future exposure threat. This leads to less satisfying results than other methodological choices.

If you want to know more about statistics , methodology , or research bias , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

• Student’s  t -distribution
• Normal distribution
• Null and Alternative Hypotheses
• Chi square tests
• Confidence interval
• Quartiles & Quantiles
• Cluster sampling
• Stratified sampling
• Data cleansing
• Reproducibility vs Replicability
• Peer review
• Prospective cohort study

Research bias

• Implicit bias
• Cognitive bias
• Placebo effect
• Hawthorne effect
• Hindsight bias
• Affect heuristic
• Social desirability bias

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A case-control study differs from a cohort study because cohort studies are more longitudinal in nature and do not necessarily require a control group .

While one may be added if the investigator so chooses, members of the cohort are primarily selected because of a shared characteristic among them. In particular, retrospective cohort studies are designed to follow a group of people with a common exposure or risk factor over time and observe their outcomes.

Case-control studies, in contrast, require both a case group and a control group, as suggested by their name, and usually are used to identify risk factors for a disease by comparing cases and controls.

A case-control study differs from a cross-sectional study because case-control studies are naturally retrospective in nature, looking backward in time to identify exposures that may have occurred before the development of the disease.

On the other hand, cross-sectional studies collect data on a population at a single point in time. The goal here is to describe the characteristics of the population, such as their age, gender identity, or health status, and understand the distribution and relationships of these characteristics.

Cases and controls are selected for a case-control study based on their inherent characteristics. Participants already possessing the condition of interest form the “case,” while those without form the “control.”

Keep in mind that by definition the case group is chosen because they already possess the attribute of interest. The point of the control group is to facilitate investigation, e.g., studying whether the case group systematically exhibits that attribute more than the control group does.

The strength of the association between an exposure and a disease in a case-control study can be measured using a few different statistical measures , such as odds ratios (ORs) and relative risk (RR).

No, case-control studies cannot establish causality as a standalone measure.

As observational studies , they can suggest associations between an exposure and a disease, but they cannot prove without a doubt that the exposure causes the disease. In particular, issues arising from timing, research biases like recall bias , and the selection of variables lead to low internal validity and the inability to determine causality.

Sources in this article

We strongly encourage students to use sources in their work. You can cite our article (APA Style) or take a deep dive into the articles below.

George, T. (2023, June 22). What Is a Case-Control Study? | Definition & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/case-control-study/

Schlesselman, J. J. (1982). Case-Control Studies: Design, Conduct, Analysis (Monographs in Epidemiology and Biostatistics, 2) (Illustrated). Oxford University Press.

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Case Studies

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Hypothesis is committed to making an impact in the classroom and beyond. We’ve developed many case studies highlighting the impact of social annotation, select from an array of topics below to discover how Hypothesis is transforming the teaching and learning experience.

Creating Inclusive Learning Environments

• Contra Costa Community College District

Improving Reading Completion

• University of Texas-Austin and University of Minnesota using Vitalsource
• University of California, Santa Cruz

Increasing Student Engagement

• Indiana University
• Kingsborough CUNY + Cerritos College

Improving Comprehension, Grades and Retention

• Kingsborough CUNY
• R1 Institution
• Cerritos College

Increasing Student Engagement by 5X: The Power of Hypothesis and VitalSource

When the University of Minnesota and the University of Texas at Austin utilized Hypothesis with VitalSource, student interaction with textbooks dramatically increased five times more. This dynamic duo not only made digital texts come alive with social annotation, but it also sparked a vibrant intellectual community, empowering students to dive deeper into the material.

Mayor of Boston: Improving Transparency with Social Annotation

University of California, Santa Cruz – Utilizing Hypothesis with JSTOR

Indiana University Transforms the First-year Experience with Hypothesis

Empowering Diverse Learners With Social Annotation: Contra Costa Community College District

R1 Institution: 2x increase in graduate-level comprehension among undergraduate students

Empowering Online Course Excellence: How Hypothesis Helped UDC Achieve QM Certification

Engaging Students, Boosting Grades: The CUNY Kingsborough Case Study

Cerritos College and Hypothesis: Revolutionizing Engagement, Retention and Student Outcomes

Enhancing Academic Success with Hypothesis: A Case Study of Cerritos College and CUNY Kingsborough

Amplifying OER Engagement with Hypothesis at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee

Transform Your Educational Approach: Discover How Moravian University Enhanced Student Engagement with Hypothesis

Success stories.

Kevin Walters, Ph.D. – Assistant Professor of Psychology

“In higher education today, faculty are asked to do more and more, and we only have so many hours in the day. Tools like Hypothesis can help us to build that community and learning environment for students without the burden of excessive work on the instructors’ part.”

The University of Southern Mississippi:Katherine Gaffney & Katie McKenzie

Kalamazoo College: Josh Moon, PhD

San Joaquin Delta College: Dr. Sarah Antinora

Colorado School of Mines: Beth Reddy

University of Colorado Boulder: Leysia Palen

San Jose State University: Dr. Luis Poza

Metropolitan State University of Denver: Dr. Sonny Dhoot

Appalachian State University: Dr. Lynn Gibbard & Erin Ethridge

Florida State University: Dr. Diana Williams

Muskegon Community College: Jason Shaughnessy

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Hypothesis Case Studies Samples For Students

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This study was conducted to analyze the principal efficacy between the first year students (Cohort 8) and the second year students (Cohort 7) of the Masters Educational Leadership University Program. The principal efficacy can be measured via analyzing the responses obtained across the various items of the questionnaire exploring areas of time management, enthusiasm, organizational management, policies and several more. For this reason, the foremost research question is as follows:

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It was therefore hypothesized that the principal efficacy of cohort 7 is greater that cohort 8 as shown below: Ho: u1=u2

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9.1 You use the symbol H0 for which hypothesis?

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9.2 You use the symbol H1 for which hypothesis?

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9.3 What symbol do you use for the chance of committing a Type I error? 9.4 What symbol do you use for the chance of committing a Type II error? β 9.5 What does 1 - α represent? confidence level 9.6 What is the relationship of α to a Type I error? it is the significant level 9.7 What is the relationship of β to a Type II error?

If the null hypothesis is false, then the probability of a Type II error is called β

9.8 How is power related to the probability of making a Type II error?

When the power is decreased, then the chances of you making an error is decreased

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- Sample mean can be calculated using the following formula: μ=x=1 Nxi , where xi is mass of sample.

The mean is equal

x=130i=130xi=14.87 ounces In a set of observations, median is a value of variable that have half of the number of observations below it and remaining half above it (Agarval, 43). To set median it is necessary to arrange data in ascending or descending order. As the number of samples is even (N=2p) the average of p-th and (p+1)-th is median. In our case median is equal to 14.8 ounces.

Standard deviation can be calculated as (Bajpai, 129)

σ=i=1Nxi-μ2N=0.541 ounces σN=0.54130=0.099 ounces

It is possible to find numbers –x and x, between which lies mass of soda with probability 95 % (1-α).

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