Research Methods and Statistics I: PSYC 063

INTRODUCTION TO
PSYCHOLOGICAL STATISTICS
CHAPTER 1

STATISTICS
Statistics: a set of methods for dealing
with numerical facts, that is data.
State

% Bachelor's

Rank

West Virginia

17.30%

50

Arkansas

18.90%

49

Mississippi

19.60%

48

Kentucky

21.00%

47

Louisiana

21.40%

46

Nevada

21.80%

45

Alabama

22.00%

44

Indiana

22.50%

43

Oklahoma

22.70%

42

Tennessee

23.00%

41

Idaho

23.90%

39

Ohio

24.10%

38

24.30%

37

South Carolina

Bachelors Degree:
Mean = 27.38%, SD = 4.82%
Confederate States (n = 11) = 24.36%
Non-Confederate States = 28.24%
HS graduation rate and Bachelors:
r(50) = .53
Are these findings due to random
chance?

DESCRIPTIVE VS. INFERENTIAL

STATISTICS
Descriptive Statistics: summarize a sample set of data
a researcher has collected. Conclusions focus on
that sample only. (mean, SD)
Inferential Statistics: when a sample set of data is
used to draw conclusions about the larger
population it is drawn from. (null hypothesis tests)

Sample

Population
Inferences about population

MEASUREMENT

Measurement: a system for assigning

numerical values to observations.

SCALE OF MEASUREMENT DETERMINED BY MEASUREMENT

PROCEDURE NOT THE THING BEING MEASURED.
Variable

Nominal Scale

molecular motion

Hot

=1

Warm = 3

Cold = 2

Ordinal Scale

1st Sample

2nd Sample
3rd Sample
4th Sample
5th Sample

Interval Scale Interval Scale Ratio Scale

SCALES OF MEASUREMENT
FOUR TYPES
1. Nominal Scale or Categorical Scale
numbers are assigned arbitrarily, only as
labels. So mathematical operations do
not make sense.
Examples:
Males = 1, Females = 2
Independent = 1, Democrat = 2,
Republican = 3
Red Car = 1, Blue Car = 2, Orange Car = 3

SCALES OF MEASUREMENT
FOUR TYPES
2. Ordinal Scale a rank ordering of behaviors or
characteristics.

Examples:
order of finishers in a race
student rankings at graduation
pictures ranked for attractiveness
Note: Ranking gives no information
about the distance between
Shani Davis 2010 Olympics
observations.

SCALES OF MEASUREMENT
FOUR TYPES
3. Interval Scale each number equidistant from
the next, but there is no true zero point.
Examples:
IQ scores: IQ 90-100 and 100-110 are same distance,
but zero point does not mean absence of IQ
Farenheit or Celcius temperature
10-20 and 30-40 is the same distance,
but the zero point does not mean absence of
molecular motion.

SCALES OF MEASUREMENT
FOUR TYPES
4. Ratio Scale double the number means you have

twice as much. It contains a true zero point.

Examples:
Weight (10lb 20lb)
Number of questions correct (5 vs. 10)
Time to complete task (30 sec vs. 60 sec)

TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE

Which Scale of Measurement?

Dog characteristics:

Nominal/Categorical

weight (pounds)

Ordinal

terrier, working, herding, hound

Interval

placement in dog show

Ratio

height they can jump (inches)

temperature (in Fahrenheit at vet)
obedience test score (range 20-50)
1st, 2nd, or 3rd dog a family has had
curly, double coat, smooth coat,
hairless

Syllabus: Lab Class Locations

Douglass Hall

School of Social Work

(Lindsay)

INDEPENDENT AND DEPENDENT

VARIABLES
Independent Variable (IV): the first variable, the
predictor variable, the antecedent, or the cause.
Dependent Variable (DV): the last variable, the
outcome, the consequence, or the effect.
It is hypothesized to depend on the independent
variable.

TYPES OF RESEARCH: EXPERIMENTAL

Experimental:
Researcher manipulates which participants receive
which level of the independent variable (IV).
Participants are randomly assigned to conditions.

Examples:
Tutoring/not (IV) -> Test Performance (DV)

Warm milk/not (IV) -> Time to Sleep (DV)

TYPES OF RESEARCH:
NON-EXPERIMENTAL
Non-Experimental or Observational:
Researcher measures the level of each participant
on the independent variable (IV).
Examples:
High School GPA (IV) <-> Test Performance (DV)
Caffeine during the day (IV) <-> Time to Sleep (DV)

SCALES OF MEASUREMENT
Scale of measurement of dependent variable
and example statistics.
Scale for DV Example Statistics
Nominal
Ordinal
Interval
Ratio

2(Chi-square)

Rank-order tests
F-test, t-test
F-test, t-test, and math operations

REMINDERS
Purchase the textbook and lab manual
Complete practice problems indicated on
Blackboard before lab class Friday
Go to lab class Friday
Make sure your contact e-mail is up to date
on Blackboard
No lab class Monday (holiday)
You need a calculator

CHAPTER 1B:
BASIC STATISTICAL PROCEDURES
Average December high temperature for last
decade?
High Temperatures in December, 2014:
70, 46, 55, 47, 44, 53, 50, 38, 47, 51, 45, 47, 49, 57, 58,
50, 58, 43, 43, 39, 45, 40, 48, 59, 61, 51, 60, 58, 48, 45, 39
Each day varies, so normally we would assign them a
different variable (X, Y, Z).

N is our overall sample size. With N = 31 observations,

we run out of letters, so we need a new notation.

WHY USE SIGMA?

To shorten, use a subscript instead: Xi
Temperatures in Dec: 70, 46, 55 39
So now X1 = 70, X2 = 46, X3 = 55 X31 = 39
Subscript i indicates which observation 1 to N (1st to 31nd
day in December).

To sum across all observations,

use the summation sign, or sigma:

X
i 1

PARTS OF SIGMA
N

X
i 1

= X1 + X2 + X3 +

+ X31

= 70 +46 +55 + +39

N overall sample size (31 days)

i variable that ranges from 1 to N, the number of
observations (from 1-31 for days)
X = observed variable (high temperatures)

CHAPTER 1B:
BASIC STATISTICAL PROCEDURES
First Jump (meters)
N=3
X: X1, X2, X3
X: 3, 2, 5
N

X i = X1 + X2 + X3
i 1

=3+2+5
= 10

Second Jump (meters)

N=3
Y: Y1, Y2, Y3
Y: 4, 1, 6
N

Y
i 1

= Y1 + Y2 + Y3
=4+1+6
= 11

TO THE BOARD: SIGMA RULES 1-4

CHAPTER 2--TO THE BOARD:

FREQUENCY TABLE & BAR GRAPH

ROUNDING OFF
During calculations: retain all numbers to the right of
the decimal point.
Final answers:
Round to two decimals: .6666 .67

Round up if the number to the right is >50

Ex: .8651 .87
Round down if the number to the right is <50
Ex: .8649 .86

END CHAPTER 1 & 2