Chapter 8.2, Problem 24BSC

Testing Claims About Proportions. In Exercises 9-32, test the given claim. Identify the null hypothesis, alternative hypothesis, test statistic, P-value, or critical value(s), then state the conclusion about the null hypothesis, as well as the final conclusion that addresses the original claim. Use the P-value method unless your instructor specifies otherwise. Use the normal distribution as an approximation to the binomial distribution, as described in Part 1 of this section.

24. Store Checkout-Scanner Accuracy In a study of store checkout-scanners, 1234 items were checked for pricing accuracy; 20 checked items were found to be overcharges, and 1214 checked items were not overcharges (based on data from “UPC Scanner Pricing Systems: Are They Accurate?” by Goodstein, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 58). Use a 0.05 significance level to test the claim that with scanners, 1% of sales are overcharges. (Before scanners were used, the overcharge rate was estimated to be about 1%.) Based on these results, do scanners appear to help consumers avoid overcharges?