Kruskal-Wallis test - overview
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Kruskal-Wallis test | One sample $z$ test for the mean |
|
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Independent/grouping variable | Independent variable | |
One categorical with $I$ independent groups ($I \geqslant 2$) | None | |
Dependent variable | Dependent variable | |
One of ordinal level | One quantitative of interval or ratio level | |
Null hypothesis | Null hypothesis | |
If the dependent variable is measured on a continuous scale and the shape of the distribution of the dependent variable is the same in all $I$ populations:
Formulation 1:
| H0: $\mu = \mu_0$
Here $\mu$ is the population mean, and $\mu_0$ is the population mean according to the null hypothesis. | |
Alternative hypothesis | Alternative hypothesis | |
If the dependent variable is measured on a continuous scale and the shape of the distribution of the dependent variable is the same in all $I$ populations:
Formulation 1:
| H1 two sided: $\mu \neq \mu_0$ H1 right sided: $\mu > \mu_0$ H1 left sided: $\mu < \mu_0$ | |
Assumptions | Assumptions | |
|
| |
Test statistic | Test statistic | |
$H = \dfrac{12}{N (N + 1)} \sum \dfrac{R^2_i}{n_i} - 3(N + 1)$ | $z = \dfrac{\bar{y} - \mu_0}{\sigma / \sqrt{N}}$
Here $\bar{y}$ is the sample mean, $\mu_0$ is the population mean according to the null hypothesis, $\sigma$ is the population standard deviation, and $N$ is the sample size. The denominator $\sigma / \sqrt{N}$ is the standard deviation of the sampling distribution of $\bar{y}$. The $z$ value indicates how many of these standard deviations $\bar{y}$ is removed from $\mu_0$. | |
Sampling distribution of $H$ if H0 were true | Sampling distribution of $z$ if H0 were true | |
For large samples, approximately the chi-squared distribution with $I - 1$ degrees of freedom. For small samples, the exact distribution of $H$ should be used. | Standard normal distribution | |
Significant? | Significant? | |
For large samples, the table with critical $X^2$ values can be used. If we denote $X^2 = H$:
| Two sided:
| |
n.a. | $C\%$ confidence interval for $\mu$ | |
- | $\bar{y} \pm z^* \times \dfrac{\sigma}{\sqrt{N}}$
where the critical value $z^*$ is the value under the normal curve with the area $C / 100$ between $-z^*$ and $z^*$ (e.g. $z^*$ = 1.96 for a 95% confidence interval). The confidence interval for $\mu$ can also be used as significance test. | |
n.a. | Effect size | |
- | Cohen's $d$: Standardized difference between the sample mean and $\mu_0$: $$d = \frac{\bar{y} - \mu_0}{\sigma}$$ Cohen's $d$ indicates how many standard deviations $\sigma$ the sample mean $\bar{y}$ is removed from $\mu_0.$ | |
n.a. | Visual representation | |
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Example context | Example context | |
Do people from different religions tend to score differently on social economic status? | Is the average mental health score of office workers different from $\mu_0 = 50$? Assume that the standard deviation of the mental health scores in the population is $\sigma = 3.$ | |
SPSS | n.a. | |
Analyze > Nonparametric Tests > Legacy Dialogs > K Independent Samples...
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Jamovi | n.a. | |
ANOVA > One Way ANOVA - Kruskal-Wallis
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Practice questions | Practice questions | |