A permutation test is a nonparametric significance test in which observed data labels are randomly shuffled many times to build an empirical null distribution of a chosen test statistic. Parameters: the test statistic function, the number of permutations B (larger B yields finer p-value resolution), and the significance threshold alpha. Under the null hypothesis of exchangeability, every label assignment is equally likely; the p-value is the proportion of permuted statistics at least as extreme as the observed value. Persistence: taught in statistics curricula; implemented in every major statistical software package (R, Python, SAS); deployed in experimental design, clinical trials, and machine-learning feature selection as the assumption-free significance procedure. [formal: permutatio | substrate: mind | horizon: a moment | explicit: yes | epoch: 0.01]
Accepted ontology entry
permutation test
A permutation test is a nonparametric significance test in which observed data labels are randomly shuffled many times to build an empirical null distribution of a chosen test statistic. Parameters: the test statistic function, the number…
Definition
Why it is in scope
A human-made statistical procedure for hypothesis testing that constructs the null distribution by randomly shuffling observed data labels, enabling exact p-value calculation without parametric assumptions about the underlying population.
Names and aliases
- permutation testen · CANONICAL
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A permutation test is a specific type of statistical method that assesses significance by randomly permuting data labels, creating an exact null distribution without parametric assumptions.
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A permutation test operates by randomly reassigning labels between groups. Remove randomization entirely and the method ceases to function — there is no way to generate the null distribution. The removal test passes: the core mechanism is permutation-based inference which requires random assignment.
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- Created
- Aug 4, 2026, 9:18 AM UTC
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- faa5638c268e6c16a8780aa5fc19c497dc20171d333305940a4237ba1bbe2fc1