In t-distribution the critical values are based on

Not sure what I mean by a “critical value”? You might want to read this article first: What is a Critical Value?


What is a T Critical Value?

Watch the video for an overview:

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In t-distribution the critical values are based on
The t-distribution (black line) is taller than the normal (dotted line). Image: Columbia.edu

A T critical value is a “cut off point” on the t distribution. It’s almost identical to the Z critical value (which cuts off an area on the normal distribution); The only real difference is that the shape of the t distribution is a different shape than the normal distribution, which results in slightly different values for cut off points.


How to Find a T Critical Value

You’ve got several options for finding a T value with technology, including:

  • TI 83: See: How to Find t Critical Value on the TI 83.
  • Excel: See Excel T Test; Excel will calculate the T critical value as part of the process.

Need help with a homework question? Check out our tutoring page!

By hand

Step 1: Subtract one from your sample size. This is your df, or degrees of freedom. For example, if the sample size is 8, then your df is 8 – 1 = 7.

Step 2: Choose an alpha level. The alpha level is usually given to you in the question — the most common one is 5% (0.05).

Step 3: Choose either the one tailed T Distribution table or two tailed T Distribution table). This depends on if you’re running a one tailed test or two.

Step 4: Look up the df in the left hand side of the t-distribution table and the alpha level along the top row. Find the intersection of the row and column. For this example (7 df, α = .05,) the t crit value is 1.895.

In t-distribution the critical values are based on

References

Dodge, Y. (2008). The Concise Encyclopedia of Statistics. Springer.
Gonick, L. (1993). The Cartoon Guide to Statistics. HarperPerennial.
Kotz, S.; et al., eds. (2006), Encyclopedia of Statistical Sciences, Wiley.
Lindstrom, D. (2010). Schaum’s Easy Outline of Statistics, Second Edition (Schaum’s Easy Outlines) 2nd Edition. McGraw-Hill Education
Vogt, W.P. (2005). Dictionary of Statistics & Methodology: A Nontechnical Guide for the Social Sciences. SAGE.

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Table 1: Critical values (percentiles) for the

In t-distribution the critical values are based on
distribution.
  The table entries are the critical values (percentiles) for the
In t-distribution the critical values are based on
distribution. The column headed DF (degrees of freedom) gives the degrees of freedom for the values in that row. The columns are labeled by ``Percent''. ``One-sided'' and ``Two-sided''. Percent is
In t-distribution the critical values are based on
distribution function - the table entry is the corresponding percentile. One-sided is the significance level for the one-sided upper critical value--the table entry is the critical value. Two-sided gives the two-sided significance level--the table entry is the corresponding two-sided critical value.
 
  Percent
75 90 95 97.5 99 99.5 99.75 99.9 99.95 99.975 99.99 99.995
  One-sided
In t-distribution the critical values are based on
.25 .10 .05 .025 .01 .005 .0025 .001 .0005 .00025 .0001 .00005
  Two-sided
In t-distribution the critical values are based on
.50 .20 .10 .05 .02 .01 .005 .002 .001 .0005 .0002 .0001
df                       
1 1.00 3.08 6.31 12.71 31.82 63.66 127.32 318.31 636.62 1273.24 3183.10 6366.20
2 .82 1.89 2.92 4.30 6.96 9.22 14.09 22.33 31.60 44.70 70.70 99.99
3 .76 1.64 2.35 3.18 4.54 5.84 7.45 10.21 12.92 16.33 22.20 28.00
4 .74 1.53 2.13 2.78 3.75 4.60 5.60 7.17 8.61 10.31 13.03 15.54
5 .73 1.48 2.02 2.57 3.37 4.03 4.77 5.89 6.87 7.98 9.68 11.18
6 .72 1.44 1.94 2.45 3.14 3.71 4.32 5.21 5.96 6.79 8.02 9.08
7 .71 1.42 1.90 2.37 3.00 3.50 4.03 4.79 5.41 6.08 7.06 7.88
8 .71 1.40 1.86 2.31 2.90 3.36 3.83 4.50 5.04 5.62 6.44 7.12
9 .70 1.38 1.83 2.26 2.82 3.25 3.69 4.30 4.78 5.29 6.01 6.59
10 .70 1.37 1.81 2.23 2.76 3.17 3.58 4.14 4.59 5.05 5.69 6.21
11 .70 1.36 1.80 2.20 2.72 3.11 3.50 4.03 4.44 4.86 5.45 5.92
12 .70 1.36 1.78 2.18 2.68 3.06 3.43 3.93 4.32 4.72 5.26 5.69
13 .69 1.35 1.77 2.16 2.65 3.01 3.37 3.85 4.22 4.60 5.11 5.51
14 .69 1.35 1.76 2.15 2.63 2.98 3.33 3.79 4.14 4.50 4.99 5.36
15 .69 1.34 1.75 2.13 2.60 2.95 3.29 3.73 4.07 4.42 4.88 5.24
16 .69 1.34 1.75 2.12 2.58 2.92 3.25 3.69 4.02 4.35 4.79 5.13
17 .69 1.33 1.74 2.11 2.57 2.90 3.22 3.65 3.97 4.29 4.71 5.04
18 .69 1.33 1.73 2.10 2.55 2.88 3.20 3.61 3.92 4.23 4.65 4.97
19 .69 1.33 1.73 2.09 2.54 2.86 3.17 3.58 3.88 4.19 4.59 4.90
20 .69 1.33 1.73 2.09 2.53 2.85 3.15 3.55 3.85 4.15 4.54 4.84
21 .69 1.32 1.72 2.08 2.52 2.83 3.14 3.53 3.82 4.11 4.49 4.78
22 .69 1.32 1.72 2.07 2.51 2.82 3.12 3.51 3.79 4.08 4.45 4.74
23 .68 1.32 1.71 2.07 2.50 2.81 3.10 3.49 3.77 4.05 4.42 4.69
24 .68 1.32 1.71 2.06 2.49 2.80 3.09 3.47 3.75 4.02 4.38 4.65
25 .68 1.32 1.71 2.06 2.49 2.79 3.08 3.45 3.73 4.00 4.35 4.62
26 .68 1.32 1.71 2.06 2.48 2.78 3.07 3.44 3.71 3.97 4.32 4.59
27 .68 1.31 1.70 2.05 2.47 2.77 3.06 3.42 3.69 3.95 4.30 4.56
28 .68 1.31 1.70 2.05 2.47 2.76 3.05 3.41 3.67 3.94 4.28 4.53
29 .68 1.31 1.70 2.05 2.46 2.76 3.04 3.40 3.66 3.92 4.25 4.51
30 .68 1.31 1.70 2.04 2.46 2.75 3.03 3.39 3.65 3.90 4.23 4.48
35 .68 1.31 1.69 2.03 2.44 2.72 3.00 3.34 3.59 3.84 4.15 4.39
40 .68 1.30 1.68 2.02 2.42 2.70 2.97 3.31 3.55 3.79 4.09 4.32
45 .68 1.30 1.68 2.01 2.41 2.69 2.95 3.28 3.52 3.75 4.05 4.27
50 .68 1.30 1.68 2.01 2.40 2.68 2.94 3.26 3.50 3.72 4.01 4.23
55 .68 1.30 1.67 2.00 2.40 2.67 2.93 3.25 3.48 3.70 3.99 4.20
60 .68 1.30 1.67 2.00 2.39 2.66 2.91 3.23 3.46 3.68 3.96 4.17
65 .68 1.29 1.67 2.00 2.39 2.65 2.91 3.22 3.45 3.66 3.94 4.15
70 .68 1.29 1.67 1.99 2.38 2.65 2.90 3.21 3.44 3.65 3.93 4.13
75 .68 1.29 1.67 1.99 2.38 2.64 2.89 3.20 3.43 3.64 3.91 4.11
80 .68 1.29 1.66 1.99 2.37 2.64 2.89 3.20 3.42 3.63 3.90 4.10
85 .68 1.29 1.66 1.99 2.37 2.64 2.88 3.19 3.41 3.62 3.89 4.08
90 .68 1.29 1.66 1.99 2.37 2.63 2.88 3.18 3.40 3.61 3.88 4.07
95 .68 1.29 1.66 1.99 2.37 2.63 2.87 3.18 3.40 3.60 3.87 4.06
100 .68 1.29 1.66 1.98 2.36 2.63 2.87 3.17 3.39 3.60 3.86 4.05
200 .68 1.29 1.65 1.97 2.35 2.60 2.84 3.13 3.34 3.54 3.79 3.97
500 .68 1.28 1.65 1.97 2.33 2.59 2.82 3.11 3.31 3.50 3.75 3.92
In t-distribution the critical values are based on
.67 1.28 1.65 1.96 2.33 2.58 2.81 3.10 3.30 3.49 3.73 3.91

Where are the critical values based in T distribution?

Critical Values: In the t-distribution table, find the cell at the column and row intersection. When you are performing a: Two-tailed t-test: Use the positive critical value AND the negative form to cover both tails of the distribution.

What does the critical t

Critical values for a test of hypothesis depend upon a test statistic, which is specific to the type of test, and the significance level, \alpha, which defines the sensitivity of the test. A value of \alpha = 0.05 implies that the null hypothesis is rejected 5 % of the time when it is in fact true.

What is critical value in t distribution?

t1-α,ν = -tα,ν. The t table can be used for both one-sided (lower and upper) and two-sided tests using the appropriate value of α. The significance level, α, is demonstrated in the graph below, which displays a t distribution with 10 degrees of freedom.

What is T distribution based on?

The t-distribution is based on the sample standard deviation.