How do you perform a Chi-Square Test by hand step-by-step? 2

How do you perform a Chi-Square Test by hand step-by-step?

A Chi-Square Test is a statistical analysis that compares expected and observed frequencies in a categorical data set. This test is commonly used to determine if there is a significant relationship between two variables. Performing a Chi-Square Test by hand involves several steps:

1. Define the null and alternative hypotheses: The null hypothesis states that there is no significant relationship between the two variables, while the alternative hypothesis states that there is a significant relationship.

2. Create a contingency table: A contingency table is a table that displays the observed frequencies of the variables being compared. It should have rows and columns representing the categories of each variable.

3. Calculate the expected frequencies: Using the contingency table, calculate the expected frequencies under the assumption that the null hypothesis is true. This can be done by multiplying the row total and column total and dividing by the total number of observations.

4. Calculate the Chi-Square statistic: The Chi-Square statistic is calculated by taking the sum of [(observed frequency – expected frequency)^2 / expected frequency] for each cell in the contingency table.

5. Determine the degrees of freedom: Degrees of freedom refer to the number of categories minus 1 for each variable. In a contingency table, it can be calculated by (number of rows – 1) x (number of columns – 1).

6. Consult a Chi-Square table: Using the calculated Chi-Square statistic and degrees of freedom, consult a Chi-Square table to find the critical value for a given significance level (usually 0.05).

7. Compare the critical value and Chi-Square statistic: If the Chi-Square statistic is greater than the critical value, the null hypothesis can be rejected, and it can be concluded that there is a significant relationship between the variables.

8. Interpret the results: Finally, interpret the results in the context of the study and the research question being investigated.

Performing a Chi-Square Test by hand can be time-consuming, and it is recommended to use statistical software for more efficient and accurate results. However, understanding the step-by-step process can help in understanding the concept and interpreting the results accurately.

Perform a Chi-Square Test by Hand (Step-by-Step)


A Chi-Square goodness of fit test is used to determine whether or not a follows a hypothesized distribution.

The following step-by-step example shows how to perform a Chi-Square goodness of fit test by hand.

Chi-Square Goodness of Fit Test By Hand

Suppose we believe that a certain dice is fair. In other words, we believe the dice is equally likely to land on a 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 on a given roll.

To test this, we we roll it 60 times and record the number that it lands on each time. The results are as follows:

  • 1: 8 times
  • 2: 12 times
  • 3: 18 times
  • 4: 9 times
  • 5: 7 times
  • 6: 6 times

Use the following steps to perform a Chi-Square goodness of fit test to determine if the dice is fair.

Step 1: Define the Null and Alternative Hypotheses

  • H0 (null): The dice is equally likely to land on each number.
  • H1 (alternative) : The dice is not equally likely to land on each number.

Step 2: Calculate the Observed and Expected Frequencies

Next, let’s create a table of observed and expected frequencies for each number on the dice:

Note: If we believe the dice is fair, this means we expect it to land on each number an equal amount of times – in this case, 10 times each. 

Step 3: Calculate the Test Statistic

The Chi-Square test statistic, X2, is calculated as:

  • X2 = Σ(O-E)2 / E

The following table shows how to calculate this test statistic:

In this case, X2 turns out to be 9.8.

Step 4: Find the Critical Value

Next, we need to find the critical value in the that corresponds to α = .05 and df = (#categories – 1).

In this case, there are 6 categories, so we will use df = 6 – 1 = 5.

We can see that the critical value is 11.07.

Step 5: Reject or Fail to Reject the Null Hypothesis

Since our test statistic is less than the critical value, we fail to reject the null hypothesis. This means we do not have sufficient evidence to say that the dice is unfair.

The following resources offer additional information on the Chi-Square goodness of fit test:

Cite this article

stats writer (2024). How do you perform a Chi-Square Test by hand step-by-step?. PSYCHOLOGICAL SCALES. Retrieved from https://scales.arabpsychology.com/stats/how-do-you-perform-a-chi-square-test-by-hand-step-by-step/

stats writer. "How do you perform a Chi-Square Test by hand step-by-step?." PSYCHOLOGICAL SCALES, 12 May. 2024, https://scales.arabpsychology.com/stats/how-do-you-perform-a-chi-square-test-by-hand-step-by-step/.

stats writer. "How do you perform a Chi-Square Test by hand step-by-step?." PSYCHOLOGICAL SCALES, 2024. https://scales.arabpsychology.com/stats/how-do-you-perform-a-chi-square-test-by-hand-step-by-step/.

stats writer (2024) 'How do you perform a Chi-Square Test by hand step-by-step?', PSYCHOLOGICAL SCALES. Available at: https://scales.arabpsychology.com/stats/how-do-you-perform-a-chi-square-test-by-hand-step-by-step/.

[1] stats writer, "How do you perform a Chi-Square Test by hand step-by-step?," PSYCHOLOGICAL SCALES, vol. X, no. Y, ص Z-Z, May, 2024.

stats writer. How do you perform a Chi-Square Test by hand step-by-step?. PSYCHOLOGICAL SCALES. 2024;vol(issue):pages.

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