Course Materials

Required Text

There is a single required text for this course. It is a great resource that should help you for years to come in the design, analysis, and reporting of your research. It is a large volume, but relatively easy to digest (for statistics) and contains some crass humor and well-designed examples. Although there is now a 5^th edition available, I will be sourcing the 4^th edition as it is a bit cheaper without substantial difference in content. The book is available new or used (typically for less than $30) at the WPI Bookstore and through common vendors (https://www.amazon.com/Discovering-Statistics-Using-IBM-SPSS/dp/1446249182). A copy will also be on reserve at Gordon Library.

• Field, A. 2013. Discovering Statistics Using IBM SPSS Statistics (4^th ed.). Sage Publications.*

*Alternatively, you may use Andy Field’s R book of the same brand (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/discovering-statistics-using-r/book236067). I am making this option available because some of the LS&T students who already have experience with SPSS are hoping to use this class to excel with R. I want this course to be a successful learning opportunity for all, but in order to maintain my teaching focus, if you wish to use R you will be required to first produce results in SPSS. The textbooks are (to the best of my knowledge) otherwise exactly the same.

Supplemental Texts

Excerpts from supplemental texts (below) will be provided at various points throughout the course. These are great resources if you want to expand your research library. In addition, you will be responsible for sourcing a journal article or conference submission from your field (or a field of interest to you) that applies the analytic method you are assigned for class facilitation. This article must be submitted to me at least one week prior to your presentation so that I can verify it is appropriate and make it available to your classmates to promote useful class discourse.

• American Psychological Association. 2010. Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6^th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
• Hancock, G.R., & Mueller, R.O. 2010. The Reviewer’s Guide to Quantitative Methods in the Social Sciences. Routledge.
• Hayes, A. F. 2013. Methodology in the social sciences. Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression-based approach. New York, NY, US: Guilford Press.
• Meyers, L.S., Gamst, G., & Guarino, A.J. 2006. Applied Multivariate Research: Design and Interpretation (2^nd ed.). Sage Publications.

Required Software

In order to follow along with the required text, you should download SPSS on your personal computer or plan to spend time at a computer lab on campus. PLEASE DO NOT ATTEMPT TO PURCHASE SPSS. It is exceptionally expensive, and we will make sure that you are guaranteed access via WPI’s licensing (VPN is required if you are accessing the software from off campus). Information from the IT department regarding access to v. 24 is available at https://its.wpi.edu/software/id/105.

We will also be using the PROCESS macro designed by Andrew F. Hayes that works as a plug-in to SPSS when we delve into mediation and moderation analyses. More information on PROCESS and download access is available at http://www.processmacro.org/index.html.

Supplemental Software

You may opt to supplement your work by using R for assignments and project work. R is a programming language described as a “free software environment for statistical computing and graphics” that can handle a variety of robust statistical methods commonly used in Data Science and the Learning Sciences. Some people prefer to use R because of prior knowledge with programming and because it allows for greater control of analytics. More information is available at https://www.r-project.org/ and through various popular tutorial sites.

Course Website & Canvas Access

I have developed a website for this course (tiny.cc/PSY503) that features our syllabus and calendar, and that serves as a jumping off point for access to our course page on Canvas. You can also visit https://canvas.wpi.edu/ for direct Canvas access, and log in using your WPI credentials. Canvas also offers an app for phones and tablets that is decently functional/convenient. Make sure you have access ASAP because you will be using Canvas to:

· Access the course syllabus and calendar

· Access handouts, slides, and other resources

· Access assignments and datasets

· Submit assignments for grading

· Access readings for class facilitation presentations

· Communicate with me and your classmates via email

· Share questions and comments on the discussion board (highly encouraged!)

· Assess your course progress