Researchers Oken et al. (Alternative Therapy Health Medicine, 2006) conducted a study where 135 generally healthy men and women aged 65–85 years were randomly assigned to either 6 months of Hatha yoga class (44 people), walking exercise (47 people), or wait-list control (44 people). One of the outcomes of interest was change in “chair sit and reach”—a measure of how far the subject can reach out while sitting on a chair without losing balance. The researchers reported the corresponding p-value to be 0.049. We have presented a simplified version of the study here.
a. State the appropriate null and alternative hypotheses in words.
b. State the appropriate null and alternative hypotheses in symbols. Be sure to define the symbols used.
c. Based on the p-value reported by the researchers state an appropriate conclusion in the context of the study. Be sure to comment on statistical significance, causation, and generalization along with how you are making your decision.
d. State the conditions under which the results from the theory-based ANOVA test would be valid.