TABLE 10-1
Are Japanese managers more motivated than American managers? A randomly selected group of each were administered the Sarnoff Survey of Attitudes Toward Life (SSATL), which measures motivation for upward mobility. The SSATL scores are summarized below.

-Referring to Table 10-1, judging from the way the data were collected, which test would likely be most appropriate to employ?
A) paired t test
B) pooled-variance t test for the difference between two means
C) test for the ratio of two variances
D) Z test for the difference between two proportions

Question

TABLE 10-1
Are Japanese managers more motivated than American managers? A randomly selected group of each were administered the Sarnoff Survey of Attitudes Toward Life (SSATL), which measures motivation for upward mobility. The SSATL scores are summarized below.
 
-Referring to Table 10-1, judging from the way the data were collected, which test would likely be most appropriate to employ?
A) paired t test 
B) pooled-variance t test for the difference between two means 
C) test for the ratio of two variances 
D) Z test for the difference between two proportions

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The study involves comparing the means of two independent groups (Japanese managers and American managers) on a quantitative variable (SSATL scores). Therefore, a pooled-variance t test for the difference between two means would be the most appropriate choice. A paired t test would be appropriate if the same group of individuals were being compared before and after some intervention or treatment. A test for the ratio of two variances would be appropriate for testing whether the variability in one group is significantly different from the variability in another group. A Z test for the difference between two proportions would be appropriate if the variable of interest was a binary variable, such as the proportion of Japanese managers versus American managers who were motivated for upward mobility.

TABLE 10-1 Are Japanese Managers More Motivated Than American Managers? a Randomly