Statistics for Social Workers

by Weinbach, Robert W.; Grinnell, Richard M., Jr.

Edition:

5th

ISBN13:

9780801333125

ISBN10:

0801333121

Format:

Paperback

Pub. Date:

7/1/2000

Publisher(s):

Pearson College Div

Upgraded Edition: Click here!

Other versions by this Author

List Price: ~~$60.40~~

More New and Used
from Private Sellers

Starting at $0.01

Rent Textbook

We're Sorry
Sold Out

Used Textbook

We're Sorry
Sold Out

eTextbook

We're Sorry
Not Available

New Textbook

We're Sorry
Sold Out

Summary

This is the leading text for social work statistics courses because of its accessibility and the fact that it assumes no prior background in statistics. This text can be used in introductory-level statistics courses or as part of the research methods sequence in social work. It includes numerous social work practice examples, and discusses types of statistical analyses that are most likely to be encountered by social work practitioners and researchers. This edition has been reorganized and updated, with new content added on statistical power, effect size, and measures of association. New topics have been incorporated, including logistic regression and other methods of analysis not in prior editions. New figures and new content on sampling distributions and standard scores (z-scores) have also been added.

Preface

xiii

Introduction to Statistical Analysis

(19)

Uses of Statistical Analysis

(1)

General Methodological Terms

(6)

Data

(1)

Information

(1)

Variables and Constants

(2)

Conceptualization

(1)

Operationalization

(2)

Reliability

(1)

Validity

(1)

Research Hypotheses

(1)

Levels of Measurement

(5)

Nominal

(1)

Ordinal

(2)

Interval

(1)

Ratio

(1)

Other Measurement Classifications

(1)

Discrete Variables and Continuous Variables

(1)

Dichotomous, Binary, and Dummy Variables

(1)

Levels of Measurement and Analysis of Data

(1)

Categories of Statistical Analyses

(1)

Number of Variables Analyzed

(1)

Descriptive and Inferential

(1)

Concluding Thoughts

(1)

Study Questions

(3)

Frequency Distributions and Graphs

(19)

Frequency Distributions

(4)

Absolute Frequency Distributions

(1)

Cumulative Frequency Distributions

(1)

Percentage Frequency Distributions

(1)

Cumulative Percentage Distributions

(1)

Grouped Frequency Distributions

(2)

Using Frequency Distributions to Analyze Data

(2)

Misrepresentation of Data

(1)

Example: An Administrator's Efforts to Hire More Women

(1)

Graphical Presentation of Data

(6)

Bar Graphs

(1)

Pie Charts

(2)

Histograms

(1)

Frequency Polygons

(2)

Pareto Charts

(1)

Stem-and-Leaf Plots

(1)

A Common Mistake in Displaying Data

(1)

Concluding Thoughts

(1)

Study Questions

(2)

Central Tendency and Variability

(19)

Central Tendency

(9)

The Mode

(2)

The Median

(1)

The Mean

(2)

Which Measure of Central Tendency to Use?

(3)

Variability

(8)

The Range

(1)

The Interquartile Range

(1)

The Mean Deviation

(1)

The Variance

(1)

The Standard Deviation

(4)

Reporting Measures of Variability

(1)

Concluding Thoughts

(1)

Study Questions

(2)

Normal Distributions

(18)

Skewed Distributions

(2)

Normal Distributions

(4)

Converting Raw Scores to z Scores and Percentiles

(8)

Practical Uses of z Scores

(1)

Example: Student Anxiety

(2)

Deriving Raw Scores from Percentiles

(2)

Concluding Thoughts

(1)

Study Questions

(2)

Introduction to Hypothesis Testing

(22)

Alternative Explanations

(3)

Rival Hypotheses

(1)

Design Bias

(2)

Sampling Error

(1)

Probability

(3)

Refuting Sampling Error

(1)

Replication

(1)

Statistical Analyses

(1)

Research Hypotheses

(2)

The One-Tailed Research Hypothesis

(1)

The Two-Tailed Research Hypothesis

(1)

The Null Research Hypothesis

(1)

Testing the Null Hypothesis

(3)

Statistical Significance

(2)

p-Values

(1)

Rejection Levels

(2)

Errors in Drawing Conclusions About Relationships

(2)

Avoiding Type I Errors

(1)

Statistically Significant Relationships and Meaningful Findings

(3)

Assessing Strength (Effect Size)

(2)

Is the Relationship Surprising?

(1)

Complex Interpretations of Statistically Significant Relationships

(1)

Concluding Thoughts

(1)

Study Questions

(2)

Sampling Distributions and Hypothesis Testing

(18)

Sample Size and Sampling Error

(2)

Sampling Distributions and Inference

100

(2)

Comparing an Experimental Sample with Its Population

100

(1)

Comparing a Nonexperimental Sample with Its Population

101

(1)

Sampling Distribution of Means

102

(9)

Samples Drawn from Normal Distributions

105

(5)

Samples Drawn from Skewed Distributions

110

(1)

Estimating Parameters from Statistics

111

(3)

Constructing a 95 Percent Confidence Interval

112

(1)

Constructing a 99 Percent Confidence Interval

112

(2)

Other Distributions

114

(1)

Concluding Thoughts

114

(1)

Study Questions

115

(1)

Selecting a Statistical Test

116

(18)

The Importance of Selecting the Correct Statistical Test

116

(2)

Factors to Consider When Selecting a Statistical Test

118

(7)

Sampling Method(s) Used

118

(1)

Distribution of the Variables within the Population

119

(1)

Level of Measurement of the Independent and Dependent Variables

120

(1)

Amount of Statistical Power That is Desirable

121

(3)

Robustness of Tests Being Considered

124

(1)

Parametric and Nonparametric Tests

125

(1)

Multivariate Statistical Tests

126

(1)

General Guidelines for Test Selection

127

(2)

Getting Help With Data Analyses

129

(1)

Concluding Thoughts

130

(2)

Study Questions

132

(2)

Correlation

134

(30)

Uses of Correlation

135

(3)

Scattergrams

135

(3)

Perfect Correlations

138

(2)

Nonperfect Correlations

140

(2)

Interpreting Linear Correlations

142

(4)

The Range of Correlation Coefficients

143

(1)

Interpreting Very Strong Correlations

143

(1)

The Coefficient of Determination

144

(1)

Correlation is Not Causation

145

(1)

Computation and Presentation of Pearson's r

146

(2)

Using Pearsons's r for Inference

148

(6)

Example: Verbal Participation among Female Group Members

149

(3)

Example: Worker Experience and Error Rates

152

(2)

Nonparametric Alternatives

154

(1)

Spearman's rho and Kendall's tau

154

(1)

Example: Caregiver Attitudes and Longevity of Hospice Patients

154

(1)

Using Correlation with Three or More Variables

155

(4)

Partial r

155

(1)

Multiple R

156

(3)

Other Multivariate Tests That Use Correlation

159

(3)

Factor Analysis

159

(2)

Cluster Analysis

161

(1)

Concluding Thoughts

162

(1)

Study Questions

162

(2)

Regression Analyses

164

(23)

What is Prediction?

164

(3)

What is Simple Linear Regression?

167

(2)

Formulating a Research Question

168

(1)

Limitations of Simple Linear Regression

168

(1)

Computation of the Regression Equation

169

(3)

More About the Regression Line

172

(4)

The Least-Squares Criterion

172

(2)

The Regression Coefficient (b)

174

(1)

The y-Intercept (a)

174

(1)

Predicted Y (Y')

175

(1)

Interchanging X and Y Variables

176

(1)

Interpreting Results

176

(1)

Presentation of Y'

177

(1)

The Standard Error

177

(1)

Using Regression Analyses in Social Work Practice

177

(3)

Example: Socializing with Family Members and Life Satisfaction

177

(2)

Example: Worker's Case Load Size and Number of Sick Days Taken

179

(1)

Regression with Three or More Variables

180

(2)

Other Types of Regression Analyses

182

(2)

Discriminant Analysis

182

(1)

Logistic Regression

183

(1)

Concluding Thoughts

184

(1)

Study Questions

185

(2)

Cross-Tabulation

187

(28)

The Chi-Square Test of Association

187

(15)

Observed Frequencies

189

(2)

Expected Frequencies

191

(2)

Degrees of Freedom

193

(3)

Computation of Chi-Square

196

(1)

Presentation of Chi-Square

197

(1)

Interpreting the Results of a Chi-Square Analysis

197

(1)

Meaningfulness and Sample Size

198

(2)

Related Indicators of the Strength of a Relationship

200

(1)

Restrictions on the Use of Chi-Square

201

(1)

An Alternative to Chi-Square: Fisher's Exact Test

202

(1)

Using Chi-Square in Social Work Practice

202

(4)

Example: Discharge Planning and Readmission

202

(3)

Example: Legislators' Voting Patterns and Tax Issues

205

(1)

Chi-Square with Three or More Variables

206

(3)

Problems with Sizes of Expected Frequencies

207

(1)

Effects of Introducing Additional Variables

208

(1)

Special Applications of the Chi-Square Formula

209

(4)

McNemar's Test

209

(2)

Median Test

211

(2)

Concluding Thoughts

213

(1)

Study Questions

214

(1)

t Tests and Analysis of Variance

215

(28)

The Use of t Tests

216

(2)

The One-Sample t Test

218

(6)

Comparing a Sample's Mean to a Population's Mean

218

(2)

Hypothesis Testing

220

(1)

Presentation of Findings

221

(1)

A Nonparametric Alternative: The Chi-Square Goodness-of-Fit Test

221

(3)

The Dependent t Test

224

(3)

Use with Two Connected (or Matched) Samples Measured Once

224

(1)

Use with One Sample Measured Twice

224

(1)

A Nonparametric Alternative: The Wilcoxon Sign Test

225

(2)

The Independent t Test

227

(11)

Example: Study Guide for the State Merit Exam

228

(1)

Example: Treatment of Marital Problems

229

(3)

Example: Staff Turnover

232

(3)

Nonparametric Alternatives: U and K-S

235

(3)

Simple Analysis of Variance (One-Way Anova)

238

(2)

Computation

239

(1)

A Nonparametric Alternative: The Kruskal-Wallis Test

240

(1)

Multiple Analysis of Variance

240

(1)

Concluding Thoughts

241

(1)

Study Questions

241

(2)

References and Further Reading

243

(2)

Glossary

245

(17)

Index

262

Statistics for Social Workers

9780801333125

Rent Textbook

Used Textbook

eTextbook

New Textbook

Related Products

Summary

Table of Contents