- Welcome
- Important notice
- About the author
- About this site
- Site guide + Search box
- Dedications
- Acknowledgments
- My personal pantheon (of the great and the good in survey research)
- Recent and planned activities
- Textbooks for Research Methods and Data Analysis
- 1: Survey Analysis Workshop (SPSS)
- 1a: Statistical concepts and methods
- 1b: Teaching with Survey Data
- 1c: Developing research projects using survey data
- 1d: Workshop and presentations for ASSESS (SPSS users in Europe)
- 2: Survey Research Practice
- 2a: Survey Research Methodology, Practice and Training
- 2b: Major survey series
- 3: Subjective Social Indicators (Quality of Life)
- 4: Survey Unit, Social Science Research Council (UK)
- 5a: Polytechnic of North London (1976-1992)
- 5b: Survey Research Unit (1978-1992)
- Village life in Normandy
- Contact
- Origins of the British Crime Survey
- British Crime Survey
1a: Statistical concepts and methods
[New page 15 Jan 2014: last updated 10 December 2018]
For beginners
You'll pick up a bit of statistical knowledge and competence as you progress through the course, but users with little or no knowledge (or even fear) of statistics should look at the wonderful series of introductory videos from the Statistics Learning Centre. The narration is clear, the explanations are gentle, the graphics are helpful and vibrant, and the examples are relevant to everyone, especially if you like chocolate!
Dr Nic (Petty) has just published an excellent new vlog:
Why people hate statistics - but you don't need to (30 July 2018)
"Statistics is a course that many people have to take, and many people find difficult and uninteresting. In this vlog-type talk to camera, Dr Nic works through reasons why people hate statistics, and gives help for learners and teachers on how to stop this happening."
Her presentation is informal, friendly and in non-technical language: it should appeal to students who can write a sensible sentence in English, but who may struggle with Mathematics (there is none).
They do not refer to or use SPSS, but they explain basic statistical concepts in simple non-technical language and can be easily understood, not just by the business and finance students for whom they were written, but even by students in sociology, social work and the like. Anyone who can’t follow them should perhaps not be undertaking a course at any level in any discipline, let alone one designed for postgraduates and beginning researchers in the social sciences.
See also:
Count Us In: Quantitative skills for a new generation
Whilst not specifically for training, the British Academy has produced a series of reports (including a short video) which demonstrate how numbers, data and statistics are as important as words for understanding, implementing and monitoring social change and social policy .
~ ~ ~ ~
Similar considerations resulted in a set of easy to read explanations from Statistics Canada, aimed at teachers and students. Statistics: Power from Data!,was created in 2001 to assist students and teachers in getting the most from statistics. This web resource was published primarily for secondary students of Mathematics and Information Studies, although it was used by other students, teachers and the general population. It was last updated in 2011. Background information is on About Statistics: Power from Data!
The authors say the site, “ . . will assist readers in getting the most from statistics. Each chapter is intended to be complete in itself, allowing you to go directly to the topic you wish to learn more about without reading all of the other sections. This web resource is published primarily for secondary students of Mathematics and Information Studies, although it will also be used by other students, teachers and the general population. Statistics: Power from Data! was created and modified using comments and requests from teachers, about the topics they would like to see covered, and the amount of time that could be devoted to them in a course.”
The material includes a glossary of definitions used by government, including statistical terms, and the bibliography has links to a large number of tutorials and lecture notes, some of which are no longer available, but most of which repay a look. Although some entries contain mathematical formulae, the data used are everyday examples and the explanations easy to follow, eg Descriptive Statistics on the size of fallen leaves (which really need to be swept up!).
Selection of a sample and Probability sampling are superb, and contain no formulae at all!
Estimation has a few formulae at the end, but a full explanation in plain English leading up to them..
~ ~ ~ ~
Educational Project Overcoming Statistics anxiety (EPOS) is a research project at the University of Leuven and contains various reports on course construction, student experience etc.
~ ~ ~ ~
Index to Most of My Web Pages (by the late David Howell, University of Vermont). There is also a companion website for his textbook: Web Page Materials for Statistical Methods for Psychology, 8th ed
~ ~ ~ ~
SurfStat (Australian National University)
Series of pages illustrating statistical concepts, with exercises (links to applets may not display).
Video clips
Another impressive series of video clips comprises helpful introductions written and presented by Ken Heather (Portsmouth). They set everything in a social context and can be found on Economics Network which forms part of the DeSTRESS project co-funded by the (UK) Higher Education Council and JISC (formerly Joint Information Systems Committee) Open Educational Resource Programme, in collaboration with various UK universities. They are particularly aimed at students in Economics, Geography, Sociology and Politics in collaboration with various UK universities.
Statistical notes to accompany the course
Survey Analysis Workshop (postgraduate, part-time, evening) and Data Management and Analysis (full-time undergraduate) were hands-on, practice-oriented courses in the capture, processing, management and statistical analysis of survey and similar data, as taken by students at the Polytechnic of North London from 1976 to 1992.
Originally written by Jim Ring, Statistics notes to accompany course.[pdf: 54 pages, 667 kb] derive from his teaching of the statistical component of the postgraduate version from 1982 to 1988 and use the same data as in the SPSS examples. They were expressly written for students (mainly, but not exclusively, in the social sciences) who found computers and statistics daunting, and will also be helpful for those teaching or advising such students.
They are not intended to replace recommended textbooks, and should be used in conjunction with the explanations included in SPSS help. They were written long before the appearance of the original and much sought-after SPSS Guide to Data Analysis (Norusis, 1987 -1990, for SPSS-X) Later editions relating to SPSS13 onwards for Windows make heavy use of the GUI are less helpful for beginners using syntax.
The more adventurous of you should have a look at Statistics Coach, the comprehensive set of tutorials packaged within SPSS itself (Help > Statistics Coach). or at the materials on the ESRC Quantitative Methods Initiative site and on the Quantitative Methods Teaching blog from Prof John MacInnes (Sociology, Edinburgh).
Statistics textbooks for social research
I've picked out a few books which are suitable for students in sociology, social policy and political science and listed them on Statistics textbooks for social research.
Summer Schools
There's also a useful list Summer Statistics and Methods courses offered in the USA, Europe and elsewhere compiled by Alan Reifman (Texas Technical University) .
For beginners
You'll pick up a bit of statistical knowledge and competence as you progress through the course, but users with little or no knowledge (or even fear) of statistics should look at the wonderful series of introductory videos from the Statistics Learning Centre. The narration is clear, the explanations are gentle, the graphics are helpful and vibrant, and the examples are relevant to everyone, especially if you like chocolate!
Dr Nic (Petty) has just published an excellent new vlog:
Why people hate statistics - but you don't need to (30 July 2018)
"Statistics is a course that many people have to take, and many people find difficult and uninteresting. In this vlog-type talk to camera, Dr Nic works through reasons why people hate statistics, and gives help for learners and teachers on how to stop this happening."
Her presentation is informal, friendly and in non-technical language: it should appeal to students who can write a sensible sentence in English, but who may struggle with Mathematics (there is none).
They do not refer to or use SPSS, but they explain basic statistical concepts in simple non-technical language and can be easily understood, not just by the business and finance students for whom they were written, but even by students in sociology, social work and the like. Anyone who can’t follow them should perhaps not be undertaking a course at any level in any discipline, let alone one designed for postgraduates and beginning researchers in the social sciences.
See also:
Count Us In: Quantitative skills for a new generation
Whilst not specifically for training, the British Academy has produced a series of reports (including a short video) which demonstrate how numbers, data and statistics are as important as words for understanding, implementing and monitoring social change and social policy .
~ ~ ~ ~
Similar considerations resulted in a set of easy to read explanations from Statistics Canada, aimed at teachers and students. Statistics: Power from Data!,was created in 2001 to assist students and teachers in getting the most from statistics. This web resource was published primarily for secondary students of Mathematics and Information Studies, although it was used by other students, teachers and the general population. It was last updated in 2011. Background information is on About Statistics: Power from Data!
The authors say the site, “ . . will assist readers in getting the most from statistics. Each chapter is intended to be complete in itself, allowing you to go directly to the topic you wish to learn more about without reading all of the other sections. This web resource is published primarily for secondary students of Mathematics and Information Studies, although it will also be used by other students, teachers and the general population. Statistics: Power from Data! was created and modified using comments and requests from teachers, about the topics they would like to see covered, and the amount of time that could be devoted to them in a course.”
The material includes a glossary of definitions used by government, including statistical terms, and the bibliography has links to a large number of tutorials and lecture notes, some of which are no longer available, but most of which repay a look. Although some entries contain mathematical formulae, the data used are everyday examples and the explanations easy to follow, eg Descriptive Statistics on the size of fallen leaves (which really need to be swept up!).
Selection of a sample and Probability sampling are superb, and contain no formulae at all!
Estimation has a few formulae at the end, but a full explanation in plain English leading up to them..
~ ~ ~ ~
Educational Project Overcoming Statistics anxiety (EPOS) is a research project at the University of Leuven and contains various reports on course construction, student experience etc.
~ ~ ~ ~
Index to Most of My Web Pages (by the late David Howell, University of Vermont). There is also a companion website for his textbook: Web Page Materials for Statistical Methods for Psychology, 8th ed
~ ~ ~ ~
SurfStat (Australian National University)
Series of pages illustrating statistical concepts, with exercises (links to applets may not display).
Video clips
Another impressive series of video clips comprises helpful introductions written and presented by Ken Heather (Portsmouth). They set everything in a social context and can be found on Economics Network which forms part of the DeSTRESS project co-funded by the (UK) Higher Education Council and JISC (formerly Joint Information Systems Committee) Open Educational Resource Programme, in collaboration with various UK universities. They are particularly aimed at students in Economics, Geography, Sociology and Politics in collaboration with various UK universities.
Statistical notes to accompany the course
Survey Analysis Workshop (postgraduate, part-time, evening) and Data Management and Analysis (full-time undergraduate) were hands-on, practice-oriented courses in the capture, processing, management and statistical analysis of survey and similar data, as taken by students at the Polytechnic of North London from 1976 to 1992.
Originally written by Jim Ring, Statistics notes to accompany course.[pdf: 54 pages, 667 kb] derive from his teaching of the statistical component of the postgraduate version from 1982 to 1988 and use the same data as in the SPSS examples. They were expressly written for students (mainly, but not exclusively, in the social sciences) who found computers and statistics daunting, and will also be helpful for those teaching or advising such students.
They are not intended to replace recommended textbooks, and should be used in conjunction with the explanations included in SPSS help. They were written long before the appearance of the original and much sought-after SPSS Guide to Data Analysis (Norusis, 1987 -1990, for SPSS-X) Later editions relating to SPSS13 onwards for Windows make heavy use of the GUI are less helpful for beginners using syntax.
The more adventurous of you should have a look at Statistics Coach, the comprehensive set of tutorials packaged within SPSS itself (Help > Statistics Coach). or at the materials on the ESRC Quantitative Methods Initiative site and on the Quantitative Methods Teaching blog from Prof John MacInnes (Sociology, Edinburgh).
Statistics textbooks for social research
I've picked out a few books which are suitable for students in sociology, social policy and political science and listed them on Statistics textbooks for social research.
Summer Schools
There's also a useful list Summer Statistics and Methods courses offered in the USA, Europe and elsewhere compiled by Alan Reifman (Texas Technical University) .