Final answer:
In a study assessing marital satisfaction about childcare responsibilities division between dual-career couples, a hypothesis test can be conducted to see if husbands are significantly happier than wives. This involves the calculation of a sample mean difference and conducting a t-test to compare against the null hypothesis of no satisfaction difference.
Step-by-step explanation:
The marital satisfaction study that involves dual-career couples is looking to understand how husbands and wives perceive the division of childcare responsibilities. The study asks the couples to rate their satisfaction on a scale where 1 indicates strong agreement (satisfied) and 5 indicates strong disagreement (dissatisfied) regarding their contentment with the division of childcare.
When conducting a hypothesis test to determine if the mean difference in satisfaction levels indicates that husbands are happier than wives, one would typically begin by stating the null hypothesis, which in this case might be that there is no difference in satisfaction levels between husbands and wives. The alternative hypothesis would be that the mean difference is negative, signifying that husbands are more satisfied.
To proceed with the empirical analysis, the differences in satisfaction levels for each couple would be calculated (husband's score minus wife's score), and the sample mean difference computed. A t-test could be used to test the hypothesis, assuming the sample size is small and the distribution of differences is approximately normal.
If the p-value obtained from the test is less than the chosen significance level, often 0.05, the null hypothesis would be rejected, indicating a significant difference in satisfaction levels favoring husbands.