One possible research scenario is a study on the effect of ChatGPT support on students’ academic writing performance. In this study, there are two groups: one group of HUFL...
One possible research scenario is a study on the effect of ChatGPT support on students’ academic writing performance. In this study, there are two groups: one group of HUFLIT ELS students writes with ChatGPT support, and another group writes without AI support. These are two separate groups of participants, so the data come from different students, not the same individuals measured twice.
In this case, I would use an independent samples t-test. The reason is that this test is appropriate when we want to compare the mean scores of two unrelated groups. For example, if the researcher wants to compare the writing scores of the AI-supported group and the non-AI group, the independent samples t-test would show whether there is a statistically significant difference between them.
I would not choose a paired samples t-test because that test is used when the data come from the same participants, such as in a pre-test/post-test design. Since this scenario involves different students in each group, the independent samples t-test is the better choice.