Question

A researcher investigated whether following a vegetarian diet could help to reduce blood pressure. For a sample of 85 people who followed a vegetarian diet for 4 months, the mean systolic blood pressure was 124 mmHg. For a sample of 75 people who followed a non-vegetarian diet for 4 months, the mean systolic blood pressure was 138 mmHg. Methods of statistics show that if a vegetarian diet had no effect on blood pressure, there would be less than 1 chance in 100 of getting these results. Does the result have statistical significance? Why or why not? Does the result have practical significance?

Answer 1

Yes, the result does not have statistical significance

Yes, the result has practical significance

Explanation:

An experiment or claim may be said to be statistically significant if it's occurence is likely not due to chance for a certain level of stated significance. From the scenario described, it is stated that if vegetarian diet has no effect on blood, then the result obtained wipukd likely occur in less Than 1 of 100 ; this is < 0.01. This means that the effect of vegetarian diet on blood could not have occurred by chance. Hence, result is statistically significant.

The result does have practical significance too, since there is a distinctive difference in blood pressure of non - vegetarians(138mmHg) and Vegetarians (124mmHg).