CHOOSING THE LEVEL OF SIGNIFICANCE IN COMMUNICATION RESEARCH

In: Public opinion quarterly: journal of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Band 31, Heft 1, S. 80-86

Abstract

A discussion of the meaning of the statistical level of signit, noting that in theory it must be determined on the basis of values which the res'er places on the various outcomes of his work. In practice this has not been done; instead, the .05 level has been arbitrarily adopted. A simplified method for computing one's appropriate level, based on decision theory & game theory principles, is presented. The method was used to compute levels for 56 persons working on campuses in COMM res. The levels were found to be much larger than the traditional .05. Because levels appear to vary from person to person, a strategy re the level of signif is suggested for people who read & use published res. AA.