The ______ symbol is part of the ______ hypothesis, and implies this hypothesis is ______.

A) ≠; null; directional
B) =; alternative; directional
C) ≠; alternative; two-tailed
D) < or >; null; non-directional

The ≠ symbol indicates a two-tailed hypothesis, and the alternative hypothesis must be two-tailed to account for the possibility of a significant difference in either direction. Therefore, the null hypothesis must be that there is no difference between groups, which is represented by the = symbol. Finally, the two-tailed hypothesis is preferred for most research questions as it is more conservative and allows for a broader range of possible outcomes.