Sign Test vs. Wilcoxon Signed-Ranks Test Using the data in Exercise 1, we can test for no difference between hospital admissions on Friday 6th and Friday 13th by using the sign test or the Wilcoxon signed-ranks test. In what sense does the Wilcoxon signed-ranks test incorporate and use more information than the sign test?

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The sign test is a non-parametric test that only considers the direction of the differences (positive or negative) between paired observations. It does not take into account the magnitude of the differences, only whether one value is greater or less than the other.

The Wilcoxon signed-ranks test, on the other hand, is also a non-parametric test but incorporates more information by considering both the direction and the magnitude of the differences. It ranks the absolute differences between paired observations and then assigns ranks with positive or negative signs based on the direction of the difference.

In the Wilcoxon signed-ranks test, the test statistic is calculated by summing the ranks of the positive differences and the ranks of the negative differences separately. This allows the test to account for the relative size of the differences, making it more sensitive to changes in the data compared to the sign test.

The additional information used by the Wilcoxon signed-ranks test (i.e., the magnitude of differences) makes it more powerful than the sign test, especially when the differences are not all of the same size. This means it is better at detecting small but consistent differences between paired observations.

In summary, the Wilcoxon signed-ranks test incorporates more information than the sign test by using both the direction and magnitude of differences, while the sign test only uses the direction. This makes the Wilcoxon signed-ranks test a more robust and informative method for analyzing paired data.

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Key Concepts

Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.

Sign Test

The Sign Test is a non-parametric statistical method used to determine if there is a significant difference between paired observations. It focuses solely on the direction of the differences (positive or negative) without considering the magnitude. This makes it a simpler test, but it may not be as powerful as other methods since it discards information about the size of the differences.

Wilcoxon Signed-Ranks Test

The Wilcoxon Signed-Ranks Test is also a non-parametric test used for comparing two related samples, but it takes into account both the direction and the magnitude of the differences between pairs. By ranking the absolute differences and considering their signs, this test provides a more nuanced analysis, making it more sensitive to changes in the data compared to the Sign Test.

Information Utilization in Statistical Tests

In statistical analysis, the amount of information utilized by a test can significantly affect its power and accuracy. The Wilcoxon Signed-Ranks Test incorporates more information by using the ranks of the differences, which allows it to detect smaller effects and provides a more detailed understanding of the data compared to the Sign Test, which only considers the sign of the differences.

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