Final answer:
If the obtained t-value is less than the critical t-value, the decision is to fail to reject the null hypothesis. Since the obtained t-value of 2.0 is less than the critical t-value of 2.3, we fail to reject the null hypothesis.
Step-by-step explanation:
When comparing the critical t-value to the obtained t-value, if the obtained t-value is less than the critical t-value, the correct decision is to fail to reject the null hypothesis. In this case, since the critical t-value is 2.3 and the obtained t-value is 2.0, the obtained t-value does not exceed the critical threshold needed to reject the null hypothesis. Therefore, there is not enough evidence to suggest that the variables in question are significantly correlated, leading to the decision to fail to reject the null hypothesis.