A table of cutoff scores on the t distribution for degrees of freedom and significance levels is known as which table?

• A. F table
• B. Z table
• C. t table
• D. Chi-square table

Answer: (C)

The main idea is that for a t test you consult a table that lists critical t values for different degrees of freedom and significance levels. This t distribution table lets you see, given your sample size (through degrees of freedom) and your chosen alpha, what value the computed t statistic must exceed to be considered statistically significant. It’s especially used when the population standard deviation is unknown and your sample is relatively small. The table is specific to the t distribution, unlike the F table (used for variance ratio tests in ANOVA), the Z table (standard normal distribution, typically when population SD is known or with large samples), or the chi-square table (for chi-square tests of independence or goodness-of-fit). So the table of cutoff values for the t distribution is the t table.