significance

significance

[signif′ikəns]

Etymology: L, significare, to signify

1 (in research) the statistical probability that a given finding may have occurred by chance alone. The conventional standard for attributing significance is a finding that occurs fewer than 5 times in 100 by chance alone (p |Ld .05).

2 the importance of a study in developing a practice or theory, as in nursing practice.

---

significance

the quality of an assessment about the relationship between two or more values of a variable. Significance is achieved if the relationship is more common than would be achieved by a random selection.

---

significance 

In statistics, an indication that the results of an investigation on a population (e.g. patients) differ from those of another population (e.g. general) by an amount that could not happen by chance alone. This is evaluated by establishing a significance level, that is the probability, called p value, which leads us to reject or accept the null hypothesis H_o (there is no significant difference between two populations and the difference is attributed to chance) and accept or reject the alternative hypothesis H₁ that there is a statistically significant difference between two populations. A p value p < 0.05 is often considered significant, but the lower this figure, the stronger the evidence. See randomized controlled trial.

---

significance

Clinical medicine A finding to be weighed in establishing a diagnosis, or influencing management of, a clinical state, which may be expressed as a finding of significance  Statistics A measure of deviation of data from a statistical mean, defined by a probability–p value, where a p of 0.05 indicates a 5% possibility or 1 chance in 20 that a dataset differs from a mean and 19 chances that it will not. See Clinical significance, Statistical significance.