A sociologist interested in cultural differences compared women of two ethinic groups on a Role Approval Index (high scores mean high degrees of approval of one's social role). The results are as follows:

Ethnic Group A: N = 15 M= 55 S2 = 6.5 Ethnic Group B : N = 23 M= 51 S2 = 4.5
If you conduct a t test for independent means, how many degrees of freedom are in the t distribution

Degrees of Freedom = nA + nB - 2

nA = sample size of group A
nB = sample size of group B

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To calculate the degrees of freedom (df) for a t-test with independent means, you need two values: the sample sizes of each group (N1 and N2).

In this case, for Ethnic Group A, the sample size (N1) is 15, and for Ethnic Group B, the sample size (N2) is 23.

To find the degrees of freedom, you'll use the formula:
df = N1 + N2 - 2

Plugging in the values from the question:
df = 15 + 23 - 2
df = 38 - 2
df = 36

Therefore, the degrees of freedom in the t-distribution for this test is 36.