Syllabus Page 1 of 5 Psychology 243: Statistical Analysis & Design Section 1--- Tues/Thurs 1:15 to 2:40 --- Lecture Hall 002 Instructor: Dr. Matthew Windsor E-mail: [email protected] Office: Science IV: Room 106 Office Hours: Wednesday 2-4 pm (or by appointment) Graduate TA: Sarah Olsen E-mail: [email protected] Office: Science IV: Room 234A Office Hours: Friday 10am – 12pm (or by appointment) Undergraduate TA: Nicole Doyle E-mail: [email protected] Office Hours: Thursday 12pm – 1pm Location: Appalachian discovery center Course description This course is meant to serve as an introduction to the basics of descriptive and inferential statistics as they pertain to psychological research. We will begin by covering rudimentary topics such as statistical notation and graphs/tables, then progresses through descriptive statistics, central tendency, variability, Z-scores, probability, and hypothesis testing. Finally, we will scratch the surface of inferential statistical by covering t-tests, analyses of variance, and Chi-square tests. My goal is to not only provide a basic introduction to statistics, but to do so in an intuitive and approachable way that eliminates the fear and confusion surrounding statistics. We will cover material such that you should not only gain a conceptual understanding of the topics, but a functional understanding that will allow you to apply your knowledge to data in the future. Course Materials Textbooks: Heiman, G. (2013). Basic statistics for the behavioral sciences (7th Edition). Cengage Learning. ISBN#: 9781133956525 Online Materials: Blackboard. [ http://blackboard.binghamton.edu ] I will post various items on blackboard such as lecture slides, announcements, and supplementary materials. It would be a good idea to check blackboard regularly. Calculator You will need one. Not your phone. Not a graphing calculator. Make sure it can do square roots.Syllabus Page 2 of 5 Course Requirements & Grading Your grade in the course will come exclusively from exams. The value of each exam is outlined below. I award grades based on a point system (i.e. your eventual letter grade is determined based on the number of points you receive out of the total) and I do not curve, thus it is possible for everyone to do well. [Exams]: There will be 4 exams each worth 100 points. Exams will consist of a combination of both multiple choice questions that will be answered via scantron and hand-written questions that will offer the opportunity for partial credit as you will have to provide an answer and show your work. Showing your work on exams: For the written portion of exams, you must show all (major) steps to the solution. If you write down an answer, but do not show any (or very little) work for the problem, you will not receive full credit for your answer even if it is correct. Your goal is to demonstrate that you understand the process, not simply that you can get the correct answer (many calculators have programs that will give you the correct answers; by showing your work, you are providing evidence that you understand the process and are not just simply plugging something into a computer/calculator). This policy will usually work to your advantage, because if you answer incorrectly due to a minor computational error, you may still receive much of the credit for the problem if your work shows that you understand the problem and procedure. [Research Participation]: There is a research participation requirement for this course. All students must participate in 4 credit-hours worth of psychology experiments. You also have the option of completing an alternative assignment (see slides on Blackboard for details). Failure to complete this requirement will result in a grade of Incomplete for the semester. The psychology department, not your instructor, dictates the requirement. The graduate assistant who coordinates this can be contacted by emailing: [email protected]. Information about how to sign up for these experiments as well as information about the alternate assignment, should you choose not to participate in research, can be found on Blackboard under “Research Participation Info.” More info here: [ https://binghamton.sona-systems.com/ ] [Homework and Readings]: Each week there will be assigned reading from the textbook that will help you follow along in and understand lecture. While I know that statistics isn’t necessarily anyone’s first choice for engaging and interesting reading, the textbook is fairly easy to read and completing the readings will help you grasp the material. Additionally, there will be homework exercises given for each topic that we cover. These homework exercises are for your benefit and will not be graded or collected. While you are not required to do these homework exercises, they will be invaluable in helping you to understand the material not only conceptually, but functionally so that you know how to carry out the given calculations and procedures. It is highly recommended that you complete the homework each week as if they are going to be collected and not wait until right before the exam to try and do all the homework as a means of preparing for the exam. That probably won’t work. Point Breakdown Exam 1 100 Exam 2 100 Exam 3 100 Exam 4 100 ________________ Total 400Syllabus Page 3 of 5 Letter Grade: A = 360 points or above B = 320 - < 360 points C = 280 - < 320 points D = 260 - < 280 points F = < 260 points Make-up Exams: Make-up exams will only be granted for legitimate illness and/or other emergencies. If you are sick or have some other emergency causing you to miss an exam, adequate documentation must be provided in order for you to take the make-up exam. If you are unsure what constitutes adequate documentation, please check with me. Notice of missing an exam must be provided (via e-mail to myself and the TA) by the beginning of the exam period. E-mails notifying of absence after the start of the exam period will result in a 10 point penalty for the first 24 hours after the start of an exam, and another 10 point penalty each 24 hours after. Emergencies/conflicts other than sickness will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. I am extremely understanding and accommodating of real sickness or true emergencies and