Question

ap stats lesson 4.8 homework
name chase coleman

1. a recent study by microsoft in japan investigated the impacts of moving to a four - day work week. in the study, they gave all of their employees 100 percent of their pay to work 80 percent of their usual hours. microsoft reported a statistically significant increase in productivity compared to the same time period the previous year.

a. what is the meaning of statistically significant in this context?
b. using what you know about experiments, what is one way to improve this study? why would this be challenging for microsoft?

Explanation:

Part a

In statistics, "statistically significant" means that the observed result (increase in productivity) is unlikely to have occurred by chance. Here, it implies that the change in work - week structure (four - day work week with 80% of usual hours but 100% pay) likely caused the productivity increase, rather than random variation.

Part b

One way to improve the study is to have a control group. A control group would consist of employees who continue with the normal work - week structure (e.g., five - day work week). This would allow for a more direct comparison of productivity between the two groups.
It would be challenging for Microsoft because it may be difficult to implement a control group in a real - world work setting. Employees might feel that having a control group is unfair (e.g., some employees get a four - day work week and others do not), and it could also lead to issues with company - wide morale and cooperation.

Answer:

Part a

Statistically significant means the increase in productivity is unlikely due to chance and likely due to the four - day work week change.

Part b

• One improvement: Have a control group (employees with normal work - week).
• Challenge: Unfairness perception and potential morale/cooperation issues among employees.