10. Hypothesis Testing for Two Samples

Testing Effects of Alcohol Researchers conducted an experiment to test the effects of alcohol. Errors were recorded in a test of visual and motor skills for a treatment group of 22 people who drank ethanol and another group of 22 people given a placebo. The errors for the treatment group have a standard deviation of 2.20, and the errors for the placebo group have a standard deviation of 0.72 (based on data from “Effects of Alcohol Intoxication on Risk Taking, Strategy, and Error Rate in Visuomotor Performance,” by Streufert et al., Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 77, No. 4). Use a 0.05 significance level to test the claim that both groups have the same amount of variation among the errors.

Second-Hand Smoke Samples from Data Set 15 “Passive and Active Smoke” include cotinine levels measured in a group of smokers ( n = 40, x_bar = 172.48 ng/mL, 119.50 ng/mL ) and a group of nonsmokers not exposed to tobacco smoke ( n = 40, x_bar = 16.35 ng/mL, 62.53 ng/mL ). Cotinine is a metabolite of nicotine, meaning that when nicotine is absorbed by the body, cotinine is produced.

a. Use a 0.05 significance level to test the claim that the variation of cotinine in smokers is greater than the variation of cotinine in nonsmokers not exposed to tobacco smoke.

Second-Hand Smoke Samples from Data Set 15 “Passive and Active Smoke” include cotinine levels measured in a group of smokers ( n = 40, x_bar = 172.48 ng/mL, 119.50 ng/mL ) and a group of nonsmokers not exposed to tobacco smoke ( n = 40, x_bar = 16.35 ng/mL, 62.53 ng/mL ). Cotinine is a metabolite of nicotine, meaning that when nicotine is absorbed by the body, cotinine is produced.

b. The 40 cotinine measurements from the nonsmoking group consist of these values (all in ng/mL): 1, 1, 90, 244, 309, and 35 other values that are all 0. Does this sample appear to be from a normally distributed population? If not, how are the results from part (a) affected?

Denomination Effect A trial was conducted with 75 women in China given a 100-yuan bill, while another 75 women in China were given 100 yuan in the form of smaller bills (a 50-yuan bill plus two 20-yuan bills plus two 5-yuan bills). Among those given the single bill, 60 spent some or all of the money. Among those given the smaller bills, 68 spent some or all of the money (based on data from “The Denomination Effect,” by Raghubir and Srivastava, Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 36). We want to use a 0.05 significance level to test the claim that when given a single large bill, a smaller proportion of women in China spend some or all of the money when compared to the proportion of women in China given the same amount in smaller bills.

b. Test the claim by constructing an appropriate confidence interval.

Clinical Trials of OxyContin OxyContin (oxycodone) is a drug used to treat pain, but it is well known for its addictiveness and danger. In a clinical trial, among subjects treated with OxyContin, 52 developed nausea and 175 did not develop nausea. Among other subjects given placebos, 5 developed nausea and 40 did not develop nausea (based on data from Purdue Pharma L.P.). Use a 0.05 significance level to test for a difference between the rates of nausea for those treated with OxyContin and those given a placebo.

a. Use a hypothesis test.

Cigarette Pack Warnings A study was conducted to find the effects of cigarette pack warnings that consisted of text or pictures. Among 1078 smokers given cigarette packs with text warnings, 366 tried to quit smoking. Among 1071 smokers given cigarette packs with warning pictures, 428 tried to quit smoking. (Results are based on data from “Effect of Pictorial Cigarette Pack Warnings on Changes in Smoking Behavior,” by Brewer et al., Journal of the American Medical Association.) Use a 0.01 significance level to test the claim that the proportion of smokers who tried to quit in the text warning group is less than the proportion in the picture warning group.

b. Test the claim by constructing an appropriate confidence interval.

Cigarette Pack Warnings A study was conducted to find the effects of cigarette pack warnings that consisted of text or pictures. Among 1078 smokers given cigarette packs with text warnings, 366 tried to quit smoking. Among 1071 smokers given cigarette packs with warning pictures, 428 tried to quit smoking. (Results are based on data from “Effect of Pictorial Cigarette Pack Warnings on Changes in Smoking Behavior,” by Brewer et al., Journal of the American Medical Association.) Use a 0.01 significance level to test the claim that the proportion of smokers who tried to quit in the text warning group is less than the proportion in the picture warning group.

a. Test the claim using a hypothesis test.

Can Dogs Detect Malaria? A study was conducted to determine whether dogs could detect malaria from socks worn by malaria patients and socks worn by patients without malaria. Among 175 socks worn by malaria patients, the dogs made correct identifications 123 times. Among 145 socks worn by patients without malaria, the dogs made correct identifications 131 times (based on data presented at an annual meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine, by principal investigator Steve Lindsay). Use a 0.05 significance level to test the claim of no difference between the two rates of correct responses.

a. Test the claim using a hypothesis test.

Overlap of Confidence Intervals In the article “On Judging the Significance of Differences by Examining the Overlap Between Confidence Intervals,” by Schenker and Gentleman (American Statistician, Vol. 55, No. 3), the authors consider sample data in this statement: “Independent simple random samples, each of size 200, have been drawn, and 112 people in the first sample have the attribute, whereas 88 people in the second sample have the attribute.”

c. Use a 0.05 significance level to test the claim that the two population proportions are equal. What do you conclude?

Are Seat Belts Effective? A simple random sample of front-seat occupants involved in car crashes is obtained. Among 2823 occupants not wearing seat belts, 31 were killed. Among 7765 occupants wearing seat belts, 16 were killed (based on data from “Who Wants Airbags?” by Meyer and Finney, Chance, Vol. 18, No. 2). We want to use a 0.05 significance level to test the claim that seat belts are effective in reducing fatalities.

a. Test the claim using a hypothesis test.

Are Seat Belts Effective? A simple random sample of front-seat occupants involved in car crashes is obtained. Among 2823 occupants not wearing seat belts, 31 were killed. Among 7765 occupants wearing seat belts, 16 were killed (based on data from “Who Wants Airbags?” by Meyer and Finney, Chance, Vol. 18, No. 2). We want to use a 0.05 significance level to test the claim that seat belts are effective in reducing fatalities.

b. Test the claim by constructing an appropriate confidence interval.

Are Seat Belts Effective? A simple random sample of front-seat occupants involved in car crashes is obtained. Among 2823 occupants not wearing seat belts, 31 were killed. Among 7765 occupants wearing seat belts, 16 were killed (based on data from “Who Wants Airbags?” by Meyer and Finney, Chance, Vol. 18, No. 2). We want to use a 0.05 significance level to test the claim that seat belts are effective in reducing fatalities.

c. What does the result suggest about the effectiveness of seat belts?

Can Dogs Detect Malaria? A study was conducted to determine whether dogs could detect malaria from socks worn by malaria patients and socks worn by patients without malaria. Among 175 socks worn by malaria patients, the dogs made correct identifications 123 times. Among 145 socks worn by patients without malaria, the dogs made correct identifications 131 times (based on data presented at an annual meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine, by principal investigator Steve Lindsay). Use a 0.05 significance level to test the claim of no difference between the two rates of correct responses.

b. Test the claim by constructing an appropriate confidence interval.

Equivalence of Hypothesis Test and Confidence Interval Two different simple random samples are drawn from two different populations. The first sample consists of 20 people with 10 having a common attribute. The second sample consists of 2000 people with 1404 of them having the same common attribute. Compare the results from a hypothesis test of p1=p2 (with a 0.05 significance level) and a 95% confidence interval estimate of p1-p2

Confounding Variables A pharmaceutical company has applied for approval to market a new arthritis medication. The research involved a test group that was given the medication and another test group that was given a placebo. Describe some possible confounding variables that could influence the results of the study.