Question

One of the requirements of a chi-square test is independence - subjects cannot fit in more than one category. This is because of the way the chi-square analysis is set up, as you are looking at predicted and expected ratios. There's another requirement in that categories must be exhaustive - everyone must fit into one of the categories. This is done for the same reason. Do you feel that this is a weakness of chi-square analyses? It's often argued that it's easier to compute. However, since Minitab can compute any analysis very quickly, it's often not necessary to consider the time required to compute them. This is subjective as many students find the calculations to be quite simple and logical, while others find it difficult to comprehend. What about it makes it simple compared to other types of analyses?

Answer 1

For any test, there is some strengths and weaknesses depending upon the assumptions as well as available data. In chi-square, all samples measured must be independent, meaning that an individual cannot fit in more than one category. If a participant can fit into two categories a chi-square analysis is not appropriate. This is a one weakness of this test

Whereas there is also some positive things for this test is that it is easier to compute than some statistics. Also it can be used with data that has been measured on a nominal (categorical) scale. It can also be used to see if there is a “difference” between two or more groups of participants. It makes no assumptions about the distribution of the population. Other statistics assume certain characteristics about the distribution of the population such as normality.