Analyzing Qualitative Data

These flashcards cover key concepts related to qualitative data analysis, hypothesis testing, and related statistical methods used in epidemiology.

Qualitative Data

Categorical data representing attributes or characteristics, such as gender or disease status.

Inference

A conclusion reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning from qualitative data.

Hypothesis Testing

A statistical method for testing a hypothesis about a population parameter based on sample data.

Chi-square Test of Homogeneity

A statistical test to determine if different populations have the same distribution of a categorical variable.

Null Hypothesis (H₀)

A hypothesis that states there is no effect or no difference, often denoting equality in hypothesis testing.

Alternative Hypothesis (Hₐ)

A hypothesis that states there is an effect or a difference, often denoting inequality in hypothesis testing.

Sample Proportion

The ratio of the number of cases in a sample to the total number of cases, often expressed as a percentage.

Test Statistic

A standardized value that is calculated from sample data during a hypothesis test.

Critical Value

The threshold that determines whether to reject the null hypothesis based on the significance level.

Significance Level (α)

The probability of rejecting the null hypothesis when it is true, commonly set at 0.05.

Decision Rule

A guideline for making decisions in hypothesis testing that specifies when to reject or fail to reject the null hypothesis.

Two-tailed Test

A hypothesis test that considers both directions of an effect or difference, allowing for greater flexibility.

Population

The entire group from which a sample is drawn for analysis.

Sample

A subset of the population that is used to represent the larger group in analysis.

Smoking Proportion Comparison

The process of examining the differences in smoking rates between two independent groups.

Expected Frequencies

The frequencies that would be expected in each category based on the null hypothesis of no difference.

Degrees of Freedom (df)

A parameter needed to interpret chi-square statistics, calculated based on the number of groups and categories.