Statistics Unplugged

by Caldwell, Sally

• ISBN13: 9780534521134
• ISBN10: 0534521134
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-02-22
• Publisher: Wadsworth Publishing

Summary

In a pleasing and conversational tone, the author uses this brief introductory text to invite the student to join her on a rewarding journey into the often-feared territory of statistics . Rather than emphasizing equations at the expense of understanding, Statistics Unplugged gives students a clear presentation of the material they need to gain a solid grasp of what is involved in the process of statistical reasoning. While avoiding unnecessary jargon, this book uses the process of repetition and cross-referencing chapters to underscore the important concepts. As a result, the student is led, step-by-step, along the path of statistical reasoning.

Author Biography

Sally Caldwell focuses her primary research interest on the topic of deception in social relationships. Caldwell resides in a small village in the hill country of south central Texas and serves on the faculty of the Department of Sociology at Southwest Texas State University

Table of Contents

Introduction: Methods, Material, and Moments to Remember	1	(3)
The What and How of Statistics	4	(13)
A World of Information	4	(2)
Levels of Measurement	6	(2)
Samples and Populations	8	(3)
The Purposes of Statistical Analysis	11	(3)
Descriptive Statistics	11	(1)
Inferential Statistics	12	(2)
Chapter Summary	14	(1)
Some Other Things You Should Know	14	(1)
Key Terms	15	(1)
Chapter Problems	15	(2)
Describing Data and Distributions	17	(29)
Measures of Central Tendency	18	(7)
The Mean	18	(3)
The Median	21	(3)
The Mode	24	(1)
Measures of Variability or Dispersion	25	(17)
The Range	26	(1)
Deviations From the Mean	26	(3)
The Mean Deviation	29	(2)
The Variance	31	(3)
The Standard Deviation	34	(6)
n Versus n -- 1	40	(2)
Chapter Summary	42	(1)
Some Other Things You Should Know	43	(1)
Key Terms	44	(1)
Chapter Problems	44	(2)
The Shape of Distributions	46	(18)
The Basic Elements	47	(3)
Beyond the Basics: Comparisons and Conclusions	50	(4)
A Special Curve	54	(7)
Chapter Summary	61	(1)
Some Other Things You Should Know	61	(1)
Key Terms	62	(1)
Chapter Problems	62	(2)
The Normal Curve	64	(20)
Real-World Normal Curves	65	(3)
Into the Theoretical World	68	(3)
The Table of Areas Under the Normal Curve	71	(5)
Finally, an Application	76	(5)
Chapter Summary	81	(1)
Some Other Things You Should Know	82	(1)
Key Terms	82	(1)
Chapter Problems	82	(2)
Four Fundamental Concepts	84	(14)
Random Sampling	85	(2)
Sampling Error	87	(3)
The Sampling Distribution of Sample Means	90	(1)
The Central Limit Theorem	91	(4)
Chapter Summary	95	(1)
Some Other Things You Should Know	95	(1)
Key Terms	96	(1)
Chapter Problems	96	(2)
Confidence Intervals	98	(39)
Confidence Interval for the Mean	99	(1)
Confidence Interval for the Mean With σ Known	100	(13)
An Application	100	(2)
Reviewing Z Values	102	(1)
Z Values and the Width of the Interval	103	(1)
Bringing in the Standard Error of the Mean	104	(3)
The Relevance of the Central Limit Theorem and the Standard Error	107	(2)
Confidence and Interval Width	109	(3)
A Brief Recap	112	(1)
Confidence Interval for the Mean With σ Unknown	113	(12)
Estimating the Standard Error of the Mean	113	(3)
The Family of t Distributions	116	(2)
The Table for the Family of t Distributions	118	(4)
An Application	122	(2)
A Final Comment About the Interpretation of a Confidence Interval for the Mean	124	(1)
A Final Comment About Z Versus t	124	(1)
Confidence Intervals for Proportions	125	(5)
An Application	126	(2)
Margin of Error	128	(2)
Chapter Summary	130	(2)
Some Other Things You Should Know	132	(1)
Key Terms	133	(1)
Chapter Problems	133	(4)
Hypothesis Testing With a Single Sample	137	(28)
Setting the Stage	138	(1)
A Hypothesis as a Statement of Your Expectations: The Case of the Null Hypothesis	139	(2)
Single Sample Test With σ Known	141	(15)
Refining the Null and Phrasing It the Right Way	142	(1)
The Logic of the Test	143	(2)
Applying the Test	145	(3)
Levels of Significance, Critical Values, and the Critical Region	148	(3)
But What If We're Wrong?	151	(2)
Another Example	153	(3)
Single Sample Test With σ Unknown	156	(4)
Applying the Test	157	(2)
Some Variations on a Theme	159	(1)
Chapter Summary	160	(1)
Some Other Things You Should Know	161	(1)
Key Terms	161	(1)
Chapter Problems	162	(3)
Hypothesis Testing With Two Samples (Mean Difference and Difference of Means)	165	(23)
Related Samples	166	(9)
The Logic of the Test	168	(2)
The Null Hypothesis	170	(1)
Combining the Logic and the Null	170	(1)
The Standard Error of the Mean Difference	171	(1)
Applying the Test	172	(1)
Interpreting the Results	172	(1)
Some Additional Examples	173	(2)
Independent Samples	175	(9)
The Logic of the Test	175	(3)
The Null Hypothesis	178	(1)
Combining the Logic and the Null	178	(1)
The Standard Error of the Difference of Means	178	(3)
Applying the Test	181	(1)
Interpreting the Results	182	(1)
Some Additional Examples	182	(2)
Chapter Summary	184	(1)
Some Other Things You Should Know	184	(1)
Key Terms	185	(1)
Chapter Problems	185	(3)
Beyond the Null Hypothesis	188	(18)
Research or Alternative Hypothesis	189	(2)
One-Tailed and Two-Tailed Test Scenarios	191	(7)
Testing a Nondirectional Research Hypothesis	192	(2)
Testing a Directional Research Hypothesis	194	(4)
Power and Effect	198	(4)
Chapter Summary	202	(1)
Some Other Things You Should Know	202	(1)
Key Terms	203	(1)
Chapter Problems	203	(3)
Analysis of Variance	206	(32)
The Logic of ANOVA	208	(7)
From Curves to Data Distributions	210	(1)
The Different Means	211	(1)
From Different Means to Different Types of Variation	212	(3)
The Null Hypothesis	215	(1)
The Application	215	(12)
Calculating the Within-Groups Sum of Squares (SSW)	217	(2)
Calculating the Between-Groups Sum of Squares (SSB)	219	(2)
From Sums of Squares to Estimates of Variance	221	(5)
Calculating the F Ratio	226	(1)
The Interpretation	227	(6)
Interpretation of the F Ratio	227	(2)
Post Hoc Testing	229	(4)
Chapter Summary	233	(1)
Some Other Things You Should Know	234	(1)
Key Terms	235	(1)
Chapter Problems	235	(3)
The Chi-Square Test	238	(24)
The Chi-Square Test of Independence	239	(14)
The Logic of the Test	240	(4)
A Focus on the Departure From Chance	244	(1)
The Null Hypothesis	245	(1)
The Application	246	(4)
The Formula	250	(1)
The Calculation	250	(1)
Conclusion and Interpretation	251	(2)
The Chi-Square Goodness-of-Fit Test	253	(4)
The Null Hypothesis	253	(1)
The Application	254	(1)
The Formula and the Calculation	255	(1)
Conclusion and Interpretation	256	(1)
Chapter Summary	257	(1)
Some Other Things You Should Know	257	(1)
Key Terms	258	(1)
Chapter Problems	258	(4)
Correlation and Regression	262	(33)
Scatter Plots	263	(5)
Linear Associations: Direction and Strength	264	(3)
Other Types of Association	267	(1)
Correlation Analysis	268	(13)
Two Variables: X and Y	269	(2)
The Logic of Correlation	271	(1)
The Formula for Pearson's r	272	(3)
Application	275	(2)
Interpretation	277	(2)
An Additional Step: Testing the Null	279	(1)
Conclusion and Interpretation	280	(1)
Regression Analysis	281	(9)
An Application	281	(2)
The Logic of Prediction and the Line of Best Fit	283	(2)
The Regression Equation	285	(3)
The Standard Error of the Estimate	288	(2)
Chapter Summary	290	(1)
Some Other Things You Should Know	290	(1)
Key Terms	291	(1)
Chapter Problems	292	(3)
Appendix A Table of Areas Under the Normal Curve (Distribution of Z)	295	(2)
Appendix B Family of t Distributions (Two-Tailed Test)	297	(1)
Appendix C Family of t Distributions (One-Tailed Test)	298	(1)
Appendix D Distribution of F (.05 Level of Significance)	299	(1)
Appendix E Distribution of F (.01 Level of Significance)	300	(1)
Appendix F Distribution of Q (.05 Level of Significance)	301	(1)
Appendix G Distribution of Q (.01 Level of Significance)	302	(1)
Appendix H Critical Values for Chi-Square (X2)	303	(1)
Appendix I Critical Values of r (Correlation Coefficient)	304	(1)
Answers to Chapter Problems	305	(5)
References	310	(1)
Glossary	311	(5)
Index	316