Transcript Tips For Researchers

So You’re Doing Some Statistics:
Tips for Researchers
Dr Nandini Kannan
Department of Management Science and Statistics
Michael Anderson
UTSA Statistical Consulting Center
You’re beginning an adventure…
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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!
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It’s easy to get in
tough spot—too
tough to recover
You can avoid that
by planning ahead
How to Prepare
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Literature search
Statistical analysis plan
Data collection
Pilot study
Archive your materials
Data analysis
Report your results
Literature Search
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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
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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
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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
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“Test drive” your
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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
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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
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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
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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
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Your dissertation advisor
UTSA Statistical Consulting Center
 website http://business.utsa.edu/scc
 email [email protected]