Question

What does it mean when a researcher reports that their results are “statistically significant”? In your own words, define statistical significance. Provide at least one example to illustrate what statistical significance looks like.

Answer 1

When researchers say the findings of a study were "statistically significant," they do not necessarily mean the findings are important. Statistical significance refers to whether any differences observed between groups being studied are "real" or whether they are simply due to chance.

A statistically significant result (usually a difference) is a result that's not attributed to chance.

.If your p-value is less than or equal to the set significance level, the data is considered statistically significant. As a general rule, the significance level (or alpha) is commonly set to 0.05, meaning that the probability of observing the differences seen in your data by chance is just 5%.