Using the sample data below, run a hypothesis test on to see if there is evidence that there is a positive correlation between and with .
Table of contents
- 1. Introduction to Statistics53m
- 2. Describing Data with Tables and Graphs2h 1m
- 3. Describing Data Numerically1h 48m
- 4. Probability2h 26m
- 5. Binomial Distribution & Discrete Random Variables2h 55m
- 6. Normal Distribution & Continuous Random Variables1h 48m
- 7. Sampling Distributions & Confidence Intervals: Mean2h 8m
- 8. Sampling Distributions & Confidence Intervals: Proportion1h 20m
- 9. Hypothesis Testing for One Sample2h 23m
- 10. Hypothesis Testing for Two Samples3h 25m
- 11. Correlation1h 6m
- 12. Regression1h 59m
- 13. Chi-Square Tests & Goodness of Fit2h 7m
- 14. ANOVA1h 4m
12. Regression
Inferences for Slope
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Using the sample data below, create a confidence interval for to see if there is evidence that there is a positive correlation between and with .

A
(−0.75,1.37); there is not enough evidence to suggest that there is a positive correlation between x and y with α=0.01.
B
(−0.75,1.37); there is enough evidence to suggest that there is a positive correlation between x and y with α=0.01.
C
(0.75,1.37); there is not enough evidence to suggest that there is a positive correlation between x and y with α=0.01.
D
(0.75,1.37); there is enough evidence to suggest that there is a positive correlation between x and y with α=0.01.

1
Step 1: Calculate the means of the sample data for both variables $x$ and $y$. Use the formulas:
$$\bar{x} = \frac{1}{n} \sum_{i=1}^n x_i \quad \text{and} \quad \bar{y} = \frac{1}{n} \sum_{i=1}^n y_i$$
where $n$ is the number of data points.
Step 2: Compute the slope estimate $\hat{\beta}$ of the regression line, which represents the estimated correlation between $x$ and $y$. Use the formula:
$$\hat{\beta} = \frac{\sum_{i=1}^n (x_i - \bar{x})(y_i - \bar{y})}{\sum_{i=1}^n (x_i - \bar{x})^2}$$
Step 3: Calculate the standard error of the slope estimate $SE_{\hat{\beta}}$. First, find the residual sum of squares (RSS) by computing the differences between observed $y_i$ and predicted values $\hat{y}_i = \hat{\beta} x_i + \hat{\alpha}$, then use:
$$SE_{\hat{\beta}} = \sqrt{\frac{\text{RSS} / (n-2)}{\sum_{i=1}^n (x_i - \bar{x})^2}}$$
where $\hat{\alpha}$ is the intercept estimate.
Step 4: Determine the critical value $t^*$ from the $t$-distribution for a two-tailed test with significance level $\alpha = 0.01$ and degrees of freedom $df = n - 2$.
Step 5: Construct the confidence interval for $\beta$ using the formula:
$$\hat{\beta} \pm t^* \times SE_{\hat{\beta}}$$
Interpret the interval to check if it contains zero. If zero is included, there is not enough evidence to conclude a positive correlation at the $\alpha=0.01$ significance level.
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