Keys to Understanding When to Use Means Tests

Biostatistics BI 45

 

 

Number of means

Comparisons

Type of Comparisons

Statistical test

Tails

 

 

 

 

 

2

Hypothetical population mean with population standard deviation versus Sample mean

Any difference

Z score with Normal distribution

2-tailed

2

Hypothetical population mean with population standard deviation versus Sample mean

Direction (greater than, less than, longer than, shorter than, etc.)

Z score with Normal distribution

1-tailed

2

Hypothetical population mean without population standard deviation versus Sample mean

Any difference

One sample Student's t test

2-tailed

2

Hypothetical population mean without population standard deviation versus Sample mean

Direction (greater than, less than, longer than, shorter than, etc.)

One sample Student's t test

1-tailed

2

Two sample means, no relationships between samples

Any difference

Two Independent Samples Student's t test

2-tailed

2

Two sample means, no relationships between samples

Direction (greater than, less than, longer than, shorter than, etc.)

Two Independent Samples Student's t test

1-tailed

N/A

Two samples, relationships exists (same subject exposed to 2 treatments or matched pairs)

Any difference

Two Dependent Samples Student's t test

2-tailed

N/A

Two samples, relationships exists (same subject exposed to 2 treatments or matched pairs)

Direction (greater than, less than, longer than, shorter than, etc.)

Two Dependent Samples Student's t test

1-tailed

 

 

 

 

 

3 or more

3 or more means being compared

Any difference

ANOVA

F test is 1-tailed

3 or more

3 or more means being compared after a significant ANOVA

Any difference between all possible pairwise comparisons of means

Tukey's HSD

 

SNK

2-tailed

3 or more

3 or more means being compared after a significant ANOVA

Any differences between each experimental group mean and the control group mean

Dunnett's test

2-tailed

3 or more

3 or more means being compared after a significant ANOVA

Directed differences (greater than, less than, longer than, shorter than, etc.) between each experimental group mean and the control group mean

Dunnett's test

1-tailed

3 or more

3 or more means being compared after a significant ANOVA

Means are merged into groups and compared against other means or other merged groups of means (1 versus 2 and 3; 2 and 3 versus 1, 4 and 5, etc.)

Scheffe test

Not specified