So You’re Doing Some Statistics: Tips for Researchers

Dr Nandini KannanDepartment of Management Science and Statistics

Michael AndersonUTSA Statistical Consulting Center

You’re beginning an adventure…

Adventure is just bad planning. --Roald Amundsen (1872-1928)

When a resolute young fellow steps up to the great bully, the world, and takes him boldly by the beard, he is often surprised to find it comes off in his hand, and that it was only tied on to scare away the timid adventurers. --Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

So Prepare!

It’s easy to get in tough spot—too tough to recover

You can avoid that by planning ahead

How to Prepare

Literature search Statistical analysis

plan Data collection Pilot study Archive your materials Data analysis Report your results

Literature Search

Models appropriate to your research Measurement scales Measurement instruments Validity checks Standard analysis techniques Experimental protocols or sampling

plans Standards of evidence

Statistical Analysis Plan Research hypothesis: testable? Measurements and validity

checks Experiment or sampling design Sample size calculation Data collection procedures Statistical procedures: use the

stats you need, not just the ones you know (there’s more to life than just the t-test)

Data Collection

Set measurement protocol

Estimate level of effort to collect data

Checksheets or questionnaires

Procedures for data collectors

Make data recording robust (avoid errors)

Pilot Study

“Test drive” your Experiments or sampling

plan Measurements Sample size calculations Data collection Data archiving Data analysis

Revise plan or procedures as necessary

Archiving: don’t bet your dissertation on a single flash

drive

Make copies of source documents (checksheets, surveys)

Make archival copies of computer datasets – multiple copies of each time-stamped version

Keep a BOUND notebook recording every step of your project

Save copies of all analysis steps (SAS code, SPSS scripts, etc.)

Exercise your stored analyses

Store copies in safe, physically separate locations

Analyze your data

Follow the statistical analysis plan!

If things start going wrong, get help*

Missing data, minor variation can be fixed

Bad design can’t

Report Your Results Summarize your

analysis plan Use tabular

displays of statistics Illustrate key

findings with statistical graphs

Report effect sizes along with p-values

Avoid techno-jargon

*If things start going wrong, get help

Your dissertation advisor UTSA Statistical Consulting Center

website http://business.utsa.edu/scc email SCC@utsa.edu