Alternative hypothesis definition?

Alternative hypothesis definition?

• A. The hypothesis stating what the researcher is seeking evidence of; a statement of inequality; may be directional
• B. The null hypothesis
• C. The population parameter is known
• D. The data confirm the null

Answer: (A)

The alternative hypothesis is the statement the researcher wants to gather evidence for; it asserts that there is some effect or difference in the population and can be stated as an inequality (not equal) and may be directional (one-sided) or non-directional (two-sided). This is exactly what the researcher is trying to support with data, in contrast to the null hypothesis, which posits no effect or no difference. The idea that the population parameter is known isn’t part of this definition, since hypotheses are about unknown parameters we test. Also, data don’t “confirm” the alternative in a final sense; we evaluate evidence and may fail to reject the null or reject it based on the data. So describing what the researcher seeks to prove, with a possible directional statement, best captures the alternative hypothesis.

The alternative hypothesis is the statement the researcher wants to gather evidence for; it asserts that there is some effect or difference in the population and can be stated as an inequality (not equal) and may be directional (one-sided) or non-directional (two-sided). This is exactly what the researcher is trying to support with data, in contrast to the null hypothesis, which posits no effect or no difference. The idea that the population parameter is known isn’t part of this definition, since hypotheses are about unknown parameters we test. Also, data don’t “confirm” the alternative in a final sense; we evaluate evidence and may fail to reject the null or reject it based on the data. So describing what the researcher seeks to prove, with a possible directional statement, best captures the alternative hypothesis.