With alpha = 0.05, what percentage of the time are differences due to actual differences rather than chance?

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Multiple Choice

With alpha = 0.05, what percentage of the time are differences due to actual differences rather than chance?

Explanation:
The main idea is the alpha level as the chance of a false positive. An alpha of 0.05 means you accept that about 5% of the time you’ll conclude there’s a difference when none actually exists. So in the long run, about 95% of the time the observed difference isn’t a fluke of random variation and reflects a real difference—assuming the test is used under its usual assumptions. Keep in mind this is a long-run property; the exact proportion of true differences among significant results also depends on power and how often true differences exist in the scenarios you’re studying.

The main idea is the alpha level as the chance of a false positive. An alpha of 0.05 means you accept that about 5% of the time you’ll conclude there’s a difference when none actually exists. So in the long run, about 95% of the time the observed difference isn’t a fluke of random variation and reflects a real difference—assuming the test is used under its usual assumptions. Keep in mind this is a long-run property; the exact proportion of true differences among significant results also depends on power and how often true differences exist in the scenarios you’re studying.

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