The logic behind the Mann-Whitney U test is that if the hypothesis is true that the populations have equal central locations, then the sum of the ranks from each population will be approximately equal.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The Mann-Whitney U test is a non-parametric statistical test used to compare the central tendencies of two independent samples. The logic is that if the null hypothesis (that the two populations have equal central locations) is true, then the ranks of the observations from both groups should be evenly distributed throughout the combined set, leading to approximately equal sums of ranks for each group.

The Logic Behind the Mann-Whitney U Test Is That If