As our textbook notes, “The comparison of two groups is a very common type of analysis in the social and behavioral sciences” (Agresti & Finlay, 2018, p.183). A common way to carry out a study of this nature is to have two groups in the study: one group who is exposed to some treatment and another group who is not exposed to the treatment. In the case of the study by the London psychologists, some participants were given alcohol while withholding it from others. This allows social scientists to determine if the treatment truly has a causal effect.

The data set contains data on a study that took place over 4 weeks (i.e., it is longitudinal). Each participant took a survey prior to the beginning of the study where they assessed their level of frustration at their work. This is labeled “PreTest” in the data set, and the higher the number, the less frustrated they are at work. The study participants were then given job counseling twice a week over the course of four weeks. After the counseling session had ended, each participant took a survey about their level of frustration at work. This is labeled “PostTest” in the data. Just like the PreTest, the higher the number in the PostTest, the less frustrated the participants feel at work.

Using this data set and SPSS, run a paired sample t-test to determine if the job counseling treatment given to the participants was effective in making the participants feel less frustrated at work.

What is your conclusion, and how do you know if the treatment worked or not?