Mark ‘TRUE’ or ‘FALSE’ for each of the following.
$\left(A\right)$ The test statistic & the critical value are the same thing.

• A. TRUE
• B. FALSE
• C. Cannot be determined.

Answer: (B)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Understand the definitions: The test statistic is a value calculated from the sample data that measures how far the sample statistic is from the null hypothesis value, usually in terms of standard errors.
2. The critical value is a threshold determined by the significance level (alpha) and the sampling distribution under the null hypothesis. It defines the boundary beyond which we reject the null hypothesis.
3. Recognize that the test statistic is computed from the data, while the critical value is a fixed cutoff point from statistical tables or distributions before seeing the data.
4. Since the test statistic and critical value serve different roles—one is data-dependent and the other is a predetermined threshold—they are not the same thing.
5. Therefore, the statement 'The test statistic and the critical value are the same thing' is FALSE.