Hypothesis testing typically begins with a theory, a claim, or an assertion about a particular parameter (mean or proportion) of a population.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government charged with preventing unfair or deceptive trade practices. It regulates advertising, marketing, and consumer credit practices, and also prevents antitrust agreements and other unfair practices.
The FTC publishes press releases regularly about health and fitness claims at https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/media-resources/truth-advertising/health-claims
Health and Fitness Claims. Retrieved from https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/media-resources/truth-advertising/health-claims
Find a claim about a product or service from one of the press releases listed in the FTC website.
Read through these and select one of interest to you that has not been picked by anyone else yet in class.
Initial Response: Formulating the Hypothesis
- Summarize the advertising claim as shared in the media. What population parameter is the claim about? (Hint: Focus on a population mean or proportion, such as the mean weight of a cereal box, or the proportion of fast-food orders filled correctly.)
- If you were to formulate a hypothesis test about this product/service, what would your null and alternative hypothesis be? (Be sure to use all the correct notations for Ho and Ha.)
- State whether you have a one-tailed or two-tailed test (Be sure you use the correct inequality signs).