Hypothesis 

is a specific, clear, and testable proposition or predictive statement about the possible
outcome of a scientific research study based on a particular property of a population.
Ex:

 differences between groups on a particular variable or

 relationships between variables.

Types of hypothesis testing

 Null hypothesis is a type of hypothesis used in statistics that proposes that there is no

difference between certain characteristics of a population
 Alternative hypothesis states that a population parameter is smaller, greater, or different
than the hypothesized value in the null hypothesis.

Kinds of hypothesis testing

A one-tailed test is a statistical test in which the critical area of a distribution is one-
sided so that it is either greater than or less than a certain value, but not both.
A two-tailed test is a method in which the critical area of a distribution is two-sided
and tests whether a sample is greater than or less than a certain range of values. It is
used in null-hypothesis testing and testing for statistical significance.

A two-tailed test uses both the positive and negative tails of the distribution. In other
words, it tests for the possibility of positive or negative differences. A one-tailed test is
appropriate if you only want to determine if there is a difference between groups in a
specific direction.

A two-tailed test is appropriate if you want to determine if there is any difference

between the groups you are comparing. For instance, if you want to see if Group A
scored higher or lower than Group B, then you would want to use a two-tailed test. This
is because a two-tailed test uses both the positive and negative tails of the distribution. In
other words, it tests for the possibility of positive or negative differences.
A one-tailed test is appropriate if you only want to determine if there is a difference
between groups in a specific direction. So, if you are only interested in determining if
Group A scored higher than Group B, and you are completely uninterested in possibility
of Group A scoring lower than Group B, then you may want to use a one-tailed test. The
main advantage of using a one-tailed test is that it has more statistical power than a two-
tailed test at the same significance (alpha) level. In other words, your results are more
likely to be significant for a one-tailed test if there truly is a difference between the
groups in the direction that you have predicted. This is because only one tail of the
distribution is used for the test.
So, which kind of test should you use? When in doubt, it is almost always more
appropriate to use a two-tailed test. A one-tailed test is only justified if you have a
specific prediction about the direction of the difference (e.g., Group A scoring higher
than Group B), and you are completely uninterested in the possibility that the opposite
outcome could be true (e.g., Group A scoring lower than Group B).

Functions of Hypothesis
 Hypothesis helps in making an observation and experiments possible.
 It becomes the start point for the investigation.
 Hypothesis helps in verifying the observations.
 It helps in directing the inquiries in the right directions.