six months after a divorce, the former wife and husband each take a test that measures divorce adjustment, the higher the score (within one's gender, the better the adjustment). The wife's score is 63, and the husband's score is 59. Overall, the mean score for divorced women on this test is 60 (SD 6); the mean score for divorced men is 55 (SD 4), which of the two has adjusted better to the divorce in relation to other divorced people of the same gender?

Question

six months after a divorce, the former wife and husband each take a test that measures divorce adjustment, the higher the score (within one's gender, the better the adjustment).  The wife's score is 63, and the husband's score is 59.  Overall, the mean score for divorced women on this test is 60 (SD 6); the mean score for divorced men is 55 (SD 4), which of the two has adjusted better to the divorce in relation to other divorced people of the same gender?

anonymous · Answer

OK, I know very little statistics, but I can say this:
The wife has adjusted better overall, but that is not the question.
The wife is 1/2 SD over the mean for women.
The husband is 1 SD over the mean for men.
1>1/2. The husband is doing better (compared to the rest of those hopeless fellows) than his wife (compared to the slightly-less-hopeless ladies)