In: Statistics and Probability
A recent survey of 31 students reported that the average amount of time they spent listening to music was 11.5 hours per week, with a sample standard deviation of 9.2 hours. Which of the following is a 90% confidence interval for the mean time per week spent listening to the radio?
Is this confidence interval for a population mean or population proportion? When do you use a z-test and when do you use a t-test?
Given that,
= 11.5
s =9.2
n = 31
Degrees of freedom = df = n - 1 =31 - 1 = 30
At 90% confidence level the t is ,
= 1 - 90% = 1 - 0.90 = 0.1
/ 2 = 0.1 / 2 = 0.05
t /2,df = t0.05,30 = 1.697 ( using student t table)
Margin of error = E = t/2,df * (s /n)
= 1.697 * ( 9.2 / 31) = 2.8041
The 90% confidence interval estimate of the population mean is,
- E < < + E
11.5 - 2.8041 < < 11.5+ 2.8041
8.6959 < < 14.3041
(8.6959 , 14.3041 )