A Comparison of the Chi-Square Test for 1 df and the Fisher Exact Test.

Anders Sweetland

Expert InsightsPublished 1972

A computer-assisted exploration of the close agreement of the Fisher and the chi-square test shown by Edwards. The chi-square test was compared with the Fisher exact test using Ns ranging from 3 to 69. Contrary to expectations, there was closer agreement between the two tests with the smaller Ns. The chi-square test gave very good approximations of the true probabilities--especially when the two groups being compared were nearly equal in sample size--but only if it was used as a one-tailed test. If the groups being compared had very unequal sample sizes (ratios of 7:1 and greater), the chi-square test sometimes gave questionable results. A table of one-tailed probabilities is provided. 24 pp. Ref.

Document Details

  • Copyright: RAND Corporation
  • Availability: Web Only
  • Year: 1972
  • Pages: 24
  • Document Number: P-4850

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Sweetland, Anders, A Comparison of the Chi-Square Test for 1 df and the Fisher Exact Test. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 1972. https://www.rand.org/pubs/papers/P4850.html.
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