Definition of 'P-Test'
A statistical method used to test one or more hypotheses within a population or a proportion within a population. When testing a hypothesis about a population proportion (p) within a large population (one in which the sample size, "n", is not greater than 5% of the overall population), the formula is:
x = (m/n-P) / SqRt[P(1-P)/n] m= "yes" response n = random sample size p = proportion P = population
This formula is used to test three hypotheses:
- p ≤ P
- p ≥ P
- p = P
The p-test statistic typically follows a standard normal distribution when large sample sizes are used, and researchers use Z-tests to determine whether a hypothesis passes based on a specific significance level will be rejected. The larger the p-value in the p-test, the more likely the hypothesis is true.
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