11. List the five steps of hypothesis testing, and explain the procedure and logic of each.
Step 1: Restate the Question as a Research Hypothesis and a Null Hypothesis about the Populations.
You want to restate the question as research hypothesis and null hypothesis about the populations because it allows you to think of two different samples. The research hypothesis and the null are opposite of each other. One is true and the other is not. The researcher predicts something and researches it and the null hypothesis says there will be no difference if what the researcher predicts. The logic is figuring out the probability of getting a particular result if the null hypothesis is true.
Step 2: Determine the Characteristics of the Comparison Distribution
In the hypothesis-testing process, you compare the actual sample’s score to this comparison distribution. The comparison distribution is the distribution that represents the population situation if the null hypothesis is true. If the null is true both samples will have a normal curve.
Step 3: Determine the Cutoff Sample Score on the Comparison Distribution at Which the Null Hypothesis Should Be Rejected
You will need Z scores and percentages, if a researcher decides that the score is lower than a certain percent then they would reject the null. Psychology researchers use a cutoff on the comparison distribution with a probability of 5% that a score will be at least that extreme if the null hypothesis were true. They are described as the 0.5 significance level and the .01 significance level.
Step 4: Determine Your Sample’s Score on the Comparison Distribution
Figure the Z score for the sample’s raw score based on the population mean and standard deviation of the comparison distribution.
Step 5: Decide Whether to Reject the Null Hypothesis
Compare your actual sample’s Z score, to the cutoff Z score. Draw the