2. HYPOTHESIS
• Greek word
• Hypo+ thesis= hypothesis
• Hypo- under or below, Thesis- a reasoned theory or
rational view point
• Greek, hypotithenai meaning "to put under" or "to
suppose."
• Meaning: a theory which is not fully reasoned.
• It is used to study facts & examine the validity of the
theory
3. • A tentative assumption or supposition
• Hunch/Guess
• Employed as a basis for action in search for new
truth
• States what we are looking for
• Proposition which can be put to test to determine
the validity. It may prove to be correct/incorrect
4. CHARACTERISTICS OF HYPOTHESIS
• H should be clear & concise
• Able to be tested, verifiable
• State relationship between variables
• Limited in scope & specific
• Consistent, non contradictoriness
• Tested within reasonable time
• Simple
5. IMPORTANCE OF H
• Provides direction to research
• Sensitizes the investigator
• Guide to the thinking process & process of
discovery
• Investigator’s eye
• Focuses research
• Prevents blind research
• Serves as a framework for drawing conclusions
6. TYPES OF H
The hypothesis can be stated in the following
forms:
1. Null form
2. Prediction form
3. Declarative form
4. Question form
7. NULL FORM
• It states that no significant difference exists
between the variables concerned.
• Preferred by researcher
• The no difference statement assumes that the
two groups will be tested and found to be equal.
• H0
• One may either reject, or not reject the null
hypothesis; one cannot accept it.
8. PREDICTION FORM
• It allows the researcher to state principles
which he actually expects to emerge from the
experiment.
• More useful in Action research.
9. DECLARATIVE FORM
It generally states a relationship between the
variables concerned.
QUESTION FORM
E.g. Is there a significant difference in the
instructional standards of boys and girls schools?
10. TESTING OF HYPOTHESIS
• Null hypothesis & alternative hypothesis:
E.G Method of teaching A & method of teaching B
If we assume that both the methods are good- H0
If we assume that method A is better then B-Ha
• H0 represents the H we are trying to reject
Ha represents all other possibilities
11. • Make a formal statement-
• Select a level of significance:
Hypothesis can be tested on a pre-determined
level of significance & as such the same should
be specified.
Generally- either 5% level or 1% level is
adopted.
12. • If we take α at 5%, it implies that H0 will be rejected
when the sampling result has less than 0.05
probability of occurring if H0 is true.
• If we take α at 5%, it implies that researcher is
willing to take as much as 5% risk of rejecting the H0
when H0 is true.
• The α is the max value of probability of rejecting H0
when it is true & is usually determined in advance
before testing the hypothesis.
13. The factors that affect the level of significance are:
(i) The magnitude of the difference between
sample means
(ii) The size of the samples
(iii) The variability of measurement within the
samples
(iv) Whether the sample is directional or non-
directional
14. • Type I and Type II errors
DECISION
ACCEPT H0 REJECT H0
H0 TRUE CORRECT DECISION TYPE I ERROR
(α ERROR)
H0 FALSE TYPE II ERROR
(β ERROR)
CORRECT DECISION
