Hypotheses

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Figure 1 illustrates that we designed this research to determine if specific cognitive skills, namely logical reasoning ability, spatial visualization ability, mnemonic skill, and sequencing ability, are influenced during formalized spreadsheet training. The four tests we utilize to determine if there is a change in cognitive skills after formal spreadsheet training (Diagramming Relations, Choosing a Path, Nonsense Syllogisms, and Necessary Arithmetic Operations) are all part of Educational Testing Services' Kit of Factor-Referenced Cognitive Tests (1976). This kit consists of 72 marker tests for 23 cognitive factors. All the tests in the kit are suitable for participants with a minimum ninth grade education. The tests have been updated from two earlier versions and represent the most recent cognitive tests developed by ETS. Each of the tests are considered "established," which means the construct underlying them has been found in at least three factor analyses performed by at least two different experiments or researchers (ETS, 1976). The four hypotheses, written in null form:

H1: There is no increase in logical reasoning skill of end users after spreadsheet training.

H2: There is no increase in spatial visualization skill of end users after spreadsheet training.

H3: There is no increase in mnemonic skills of end users after spreadsheet training.

H4: There is no increase in sequencing ability of end users after spreadsheet training.

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