---
title: Sobel’s test
description: "Very geeky stuff this. Sobel's test is a parametric null hypothesis test of the significance of a mediation effect, i.e. that a third variable may be contributing to, i.e. mediating, the relationship between a first and second variable. If this…"
url: "https://www.psyctc.org/psyctc/glossary2/sobels-test/"
updated: "2024-10-05"
category: All OM book glossary entries
---

# Sobel’s test

Very geeky stuff this. Sobel's test is a parametric null hypothesis test of the significance of a mediation effect, i.e. that a third variable may be contributing to, i.e. mediating, the relationship between a first and second variable. If this is gobbledygook either, don't worry, or, go and read up the entry about mediation!

#### Details

As Sobel's test is based on a model assuming population distributions of all three variables are Gaussian, it is much better, if you have raw data, to test mediation using bootstrapping to get confidence intervals.

#### Try also

[Bootstrapping](https://www.psyctc.org/psyctc/glossary2/bootstrap-bootstrapping/)
[Confidence intervals](https://www.psyctc.org/psyctc/glossary2/confidence-intervals-cis/)
[Gaussian ("Normal") distributions](https://www.psyctc.org/psyctc/glossary2/gaussian-normal-distribution/)
Mediation
[Null hypothesis](https://www.psyctc.org/psyctc/glossary2/null-hypothesis/)
[Null hypothesis significance testing (NHST) paradigm](https://www.psyctc.org/psyctc/glossary2/null-hypothesis-significance-testing-nhst-paradigm/)

#### Chapters

Not mentioned in the OMbook!

#### Online resources

None currently.

#### Dates

First created 5.x.24.