Course
Description
This course provides a graduate-level introduction to the use of multivariate
statistics in the social sciences. We will begin by reviewing univariate and
bivariate descriptive and inferential statistics. Topics include the
organization and presentation of data; measures of central tendency and
variability; populations, samples, and sampling distributions; and estimation
and hypothesis testing. The course focuses on multivariate descriptive and
inferential statistics – ordinary least squares multiple regression and binary
logistic regression in particular. You will calculate statistics with the help
of a calculator and statistical software (i.e., Microsoft Excel and SPSS –
Statistical Package for the Social Sciences). Prerequisites: three hours of
undergraduate statistics.
Student Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the course, students will be able to: (1) identify strengths
and weaknesses in existing statistical research, (2) identify appropriate
statistical techniques for particular research questions (bivariate and
multivariate), (3) calculate and interpret descriptive and inferential
statistics (bivariate and multivariate), (4) describe fundamental statistical
terms including central tendency, variability, association, and inference, and
(5) use statistical software (SPSS) to manage and analyze data.
Handouts and Downloads
SPSS
The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) is available in the Business and University Hall computing labs. See the OIT web page for lab locations and hours. Although you may use SPSS in these labs, some prefer to install SPSS on their own computer. Purchasing the software is quite expensive, but it is possible to rent SPSS for a reasonable price (approximately $40 for 6 months). If you choose to rent the software, the "statistics base grad pack" is all that would be needed for this course. Please note that we will not be using the student version of the software because it does not allow the use of syntax.
Web Pages
Statistics and Data
European Social Survey
The Interuniversity
Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR)
The Integrated Public Use Microdata Series
(IPUMS)
The National Opinion Research
Center
The Official
General Social Survey Site
SPSS
UCLA Stat
Computing Portal: SPSS Portal
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