National Board Dental Hygiene Examination (NBDHE) Dental Hygienist Practice Test

What does accepting a null hypothesis indicate in statistical terms?

1. There are significant differences between groups

2. There is no relation between variables

3. There are no significant differences between population groups

4. The hypothesis is proven true

The correct answer is: There are no significant differences between population groups

Accepting a null hypothesis means that there is insufficient evidence to suggest that a significant difference exists between the groups being compared. In statistical hypothesis testing, the null hypothesis is typically a statement that indicates no effect or no difference, serving as a default position that there is no relationship between the observed phenomena or variables. When the null hypothesis is accepted, it implies that the results of the study do not provide enough statistical evidence to reject this idea. Thus, it leads to the conclusion that any observed differences in the data could be attributed to chance rather than a real, significant difference between the population groups. This is key in research and statistics because it helps in understanding whether to pursue further testing or to draw conclusions from the data collected. The other options do not accurately capture the implications of accepting the null hypothesis. While some may imply a significant difference or a proven hypothesis, accepting the null suggests maintaining the status quo unless there is strong evidence to suggest otherwise.