A health psychologist was interested in the relationship between self-esteem and seasonal physical exercise. She decided to investigate whether or not such a relationship was present in young adults.
The health psychologist used a standardized questionnaire to measure self-esteem. The higher the score achieved (ranging from 10 to 50), the higher the individual's self-esteem. Fifteen young adults from a local activity health centre took part. Each participant completed the self-esteem questionnaire individually.
The health psychologist also tracked each participant's physical activity over a four-week period using a certified wearable fitness monitor to calculate the average number of hours of moderate-to-vigorous physical exercise they completed per week.
Figure 1: Scattergram of young adults' scores on a test of self-esteem and the average number of hours spent exercising per week.
| Participant | Average number of hours spent exercising per week | Self-esteem score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1.0 | 15 |
| 2 | 1.5 | 18 |
| 3 | 2.0 | 22 |
| 4 | 2.5 | 20 |
| 5 | 3.0 | 28 |
| 6 | 3.5 | 25 |
| 7 | 4.0 | 31 |
| 8 | 4.5 | 30 |
| 9 | 5.0 | 35 |
| 10 | 5.5 | 39 |
| 11 | 6.0 | 36 |
| 12 | 6.5 | 42 |
| 13 | 7.0 | 40 |
| 14 | 7.5 | 46 |
| 15 | 8.0 | 48 |
Name an appropriate statistical test to determine whether or not there is a significant relationship between the two variables in Figure 1. Justify your answer with reference to levels of measurement.
Practise AQA A Level Psychology Inferential testing (A-level only) with exam-style questions for A Level Psychology. 123 questions, matched to the AQA A Level Psychology (7182) specification and written in Paper 1, Paper 2 and Paper 3 style. Every question includes a full worked solution and mark scheme, so you can see where marks are awarded rather than just whether you got the answer right.
