Welcome to Crawlan.com! Today, we are going to explore how to perform t-tests in Google Sheets. T-tests, widely used in statistics, can be grouped into three categories:
One Sample t-Test
A one sample t-test is used to determine if the mean of a population is equal to a certain value. For instance, let’s say a botanist wants to know if the average height of a certain plant species is 15 inches. They collect a random sample of 12 plants and record the height of each in inches.
The hypotheses for this test are as follows:
- H0: µ = 15 (the average height for this plant species is 15 inches)
- HA: µ ≠ 15 (the average height is not 15 inches)
Since the p-value of our test (0.120145) is higher than alpha = 0.05, we cannot reject the null hypothesis of the test. We do not have enough evidence to claim that the average height of this plant species is different from 15 inches.
Two Sample t-Test
A two sample t-test is used to determine if the means of two populations are equal. For example, researchers want to know if two different plant species in a particular country have the same average height. They collect a random sample of 20 plants for each species and record the height of each plant in inches.
The hypotheses for this two-sample test are as follows:
- H0: μ1 = μ2 (both population means are equal)
- H1: μ1 ≠ μ2 (both population means are not equal)
Since the p-value of our test (0.530047) is higher than alpha = 0.05, we cannot reject the null hypothesis of the test. We do not have sufficient evidence to claim that there is a statistically significant difference between the average heights of this plant species.
Paired Samples t-Test
A paired samples t-test is used to compare the means of two samples when each observation in one sample can be paired with an observation in the other sample. For instance, we want to know if a study program has a significant impact on students’ performance in a particular exam. To do this, we administer a preliminary test to 20 students, then they participate in the study program for two weeks. Afterward, the students retake a similar difficulty test.
The hypotheses for this paired samples test are as follows:
- H0: μ1 = μ2 (both population means are equal)
- H1: μ1 ≠ μ2 (both population means are not equal)
Since the p-value of our test (0.011907) is less than alpha = 0.05, we reject the null hypothesis of the test. We have enough evidence to claim that there is a statistically significant difference between the average scores before and after the study program.
Now that you know how to perform t-tests in Google Sheets, you can use this functionality to analyze your own data. For more tips and tricks on Google Sheets tools, visit our website Crawlan.com.
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