The Derivation and Choice of Appropriate Test Statistic (Z, t, F and Chi-Square Test) in Research Methodology

Abstract

The main objective of this paper is to choose an appropriate test statistic for research methodology. Specifically, this article tries to explore the concept of statistical hypothesis test, derivation of the test statistic and its role on research methodology. It also try to show the basic formulating and testing of hypothesis using test statistic since choosing appropriate test statistic is the most important tool of research. To test a hypothesis various statistical test like Z-test, Student's t-test, F test (like ANOVA), Chi square test were identified. In testing the mean of a population or comparing the means from two continuous populations, the z-test and t-test were used, while the F test is used for comparing more than two means and equality of variance. The chi-square test was used for testing independence, goodness of fit and population variance of single sample in categorical data. Therefore, choosing an appropriate test statistic gives valid results about hypothesis testing.