Research Methods for the Social Sciences: Basic Statistics for Social Research

Wiley, 2013. — 560 p. — ISBN 978-1-118-23415-0<div class="bb-sep"></div>A core statistics text that emphasizes logical inquiry, not math.<div class="bb-sep"></div>Basic Statistics for Social Research teaches core general statistical concepts and methods that all social science majors must master to understand (and do) social research. Its use of mathematics and theory are deliberately limited, as the authors focus on the use of concepts and tools of statistics in the analysis of social science data, rather than on the mathematical and computational aspects. Research questions and applications are taken from a wide variety of subfields in sociology, and each chapter is organized around one or more general ideas that are explained at its beginning and then applied in increasing detail in the body of the text.<div class="bb-sep"></div>Each chapter contains instructive features to aid students in understanding and mastering the various statistical approaches presented in the book, including:<div class="bb-sep"></div>Learning objectives<br/>Check quizzes after many sections and an answer key at the end of the chapter<br/>Summary<br/>Key terms<br/>End-of-chapter exercises<br/>SPSS exercises (in select chapters)<br/>Ancillary materials for both the student and the instructor are available and include a test bank for instructors and downloadable video tutorials for students.<div class="bb-sep"></div><strong>Univariate description</strong><div class="bb-sep"></div>Using Statistics<br/>Displaying One Distribution<br/>Central Tendency<br/>Dispersion<br/>Describing the Shape of a Distribution<br/>The Normal Distribution<div class="bb-sep"></div><strong>Inference and hypothesis testing</strong><div class="bb-sep"></div>Basic Ideas of Statistical Inference<br/>Hypothesis Testing for One Sample <br/>Hypothesis Testing for Two Samples <br/>Multiple Sample Tests of Proportions: Chi-Squared <br/>Multiple Sample Tests for Means: One-Way ANOVA<div class="bb-sep"></div><strong>Association and prediction</strong><div class="bb-sep"></div>Association with Categorical Variables<br/>Association of Interval/Ratio Variables <br/>Chapter 14 Regression Analysis <br/>Logistic Regression Analysis