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A certain genetic characteristic of a particular plant can appear in one of three forms (phenotypes). A researcher has developed a theory, according to which the hypothesized proportions are \(p_{1}=.25, p_{2}=.50\), and \(p_{3}=.25 .\) A random sample of 200 plants yields \(X^{2}=\) \(4.63 .\) a. Carry out a test of the null hypothesis that the theory is correct, using level of significance \(\alpha=.05\). b. Suppose that a random sample of 300 plants had resulted in the same value of \(X^{2}\). How would your analysis and conclusion differ from those in Part (a)?

Short Answer

Expert verified
a. At the .05 level, the null hypothesis isn't rejected, suggesting the theory proportions are correct. b. With a 300 sample size, the conclusion would remain the same, though, the evidence against the hypothesized proportions will be weaker.

Step by step solution

01

Understanding the \(X^{2}\) Test

The \(X^{2}\) test is used to determine the difference between observed and expected frequencies. Here, the null hypothesis is that the proportions stated in the theory are correct. To test this hypothesis, we will compare the observed and expected frequencies of the plant characteristics.
02

Calculate the Degrees of Freedom

The degrees of freedom in a chi-square test is calculated by subtracting 1 from the total number of categories (phenotypes) observed. In this case, it's \(df=3-1=2\).
03

Obtain the Critical Value

For the chi-square test, we look up the critical value from the chi-square distribution table. With degrees of freedom 2 and level of significance \(.05\), the critical value is 5.99.
04

Decide to Reject or Not Reject the Null Hypothesis

Since the calculated \(X^{2} = 4.63\) is less than the critical value 5.99, we do not reject the null hypothesis. This suggests that the theorized proportions are correct at the .05 level of significance.
05

Re-analysis with Size 300 sample

If a sample of 300 plants results in the same \(X^{2}\) value (4.63), the conclusion would remain the same. However, it may be considered less conclusive, as the larger sample size was expected to lead to a closer match to the theory. But since the \(X^{2}\) test value remains the same, the statistical evidence does not reject the null hypothesis, regardless of the increase in sample size. The strength of evidence against the hypothesized proportions would be weaker with a larger sample size (300) compared to a sample size of 200.

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Key Concepts

These are the key concepts you need to understand to accurately answer the question.

Null Hypothesis
In the context of a chi-square test, the null hypothesis ( H_0 ) represents a statement or assumption that there is no effect or no difference. Here, the null hypothesis assumes that the genetic characteristic's proportions are accurate as the researcher's theory suggests. The expected proportions for the plant phenotypes are precisely 0.25 for the first phenotype, 0.50 for the second, and 0.25 for the third.
Testing the null hypothesis requires comparing the observed frequency of characteristics in the sample with what we would expect if the proportions hold true. The purpose is to assess whether the data provides strong enough evidence to overturn this assumption. Failure to reject the null hypothesis implies there is not enough statistical evidence to claim that the proportions are incorrect.
Degrees of Freedom
Degrees of freedom ( df ) in the chi-square test relate to the number of values that can vary in an analysis without breaking any constraints. With the chi-square test in this exercise, it is calculated by subtracting 1 from the total number of categories, which in this case are the different phenotypes of the plant.
  • Since there are 3 phenotypes, the degrees of freedom is calculated as: df = 3 - 1 = 2 .
The degrees of freedom are critical because they influence the shape of the chi-square distribution used to determine the critical value. The more degrees of freedom in a test, the more the distribution curves toward a normal distribution.
Critical Value
The critical value in a chi-square test serves as the threshold that determines whether to accept or reject the null hypothesis. It is obtained from a chi-square distribution table, depending on the degrees of freedom and the desired level of significance.
In this specific exercise, with 2 degrees of freedom and a α = 0.05 level of significance, the critical value is 5.99. This means that to reject the null hypothesis, the calculated χ^2 value must exceed this critical value. Since our observed χ^2 is 4.63, it is less than the critical value, leading us to not reject the null hypothesis.
Level of Significance
The level of significance ( α ) is a threshold that defines the probability of rejecting the null hypothesis when it is actually true. Essentially, it quantifies the risk of making a Type I error — falsely concluding that the null hypothesis is incorrect. In this exercise, a 0.05 level of significance means there is a 5% risk that any decision to reject the null hypothesis might be wrong.
Choosing a level of significance depends on the context of the study and how much risk of error is acceptable. In scientific studies, a α = 0.05 is commonly used because it strikes a balance between being too lenient and too strict. If the calculated χ^2 falls below the critical value, as it does here (4.63 < 5.99), we do not reject the null hypothesis, staying within this acceptable risk range.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

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