Psychology 340 Syllabus
Statistics for the Social Sciences

Contact Information Instructor: J. Cooper Cutting Office: De Garmo 443 Phone: 438-2999 e-mail: jccutti@ilstu.edu office hours: M 11-12, Tu 9-10, & by appointment

Syllabus Outline: General Course Information Topic calendar Textbooks Course Resources Class Mallard Page (Grades are here).

Course Overview

This course is designed to cover hypothesis testing in the behavioral sciences, building on concepts learned in PSY/ECO/GEO/POS 138. The logic, assumptions, computation, and interpretation of inferential statistics will be covered, including one-sample, related-samples, and independent-samples t-tests; one-way and two-way ANOVA; correlation and bivariate regression; and non-parametric procedures. In addition to the logic of hypothesis testing, PSY 340 will integrate the use of the software package SPSS as a tool for data management and hypothesis testing. Writing skills will also be developed through a research report and written exam questions.

Course Objectives

1. Think critically about the use of hypothesis testing in the behavioral sciences.
2. Choose an appropriate statistical test for specific forms of data and hypotheses.
3. Understand the logic and mathematical basis for different inferential statistics.
4. Use computers and the software package SPSS as a tool for data management and hypothesis testing.
5. Draw valid conclusions about hypotheses from the results of different statistical tests.
6. Coherently describe conclusions from a hypothesis test in written form.

Department objectives

Evaluating Student Performance

Homework --- 30%

Quizzes --- 10%

Exams --- 45%

Research Project --- 15%

Grading Scale

score = 0.30*(homework average) + 0.10*(quiz average) + 0.45*(exam average) + 0.15*(project)

Academic Dishonesty

To ensure a smooth flow of discussions, the following policies are established: Students are encouraged to listen with an open mind, respect the contributions of others, and avoid personal attacks. Students will often be faced with alternative viewpoints from the professor or their peers. Thus, students should be prepared to defend their own positions with empirical data, obtained from the assigned readings, and reasoned argument.

You are expected to do your own work. Plagiarism and cheating of any sort will not be tolerated. Either behavior will result in a grade of "F". Note that plagiarism includes situations where you meet with other students for group discussions and are asked write a summary. Unless otherwise instructed, this means that each participant in the group must write their own summary. Making up false excuses for absences will also be considered cheating and may result in a grade of "F" for missed work.

And finally, if you have any questions regarding anything in the syllabus and or the course in general, please feel free to ask. Talk to me in class, via phone, or e-mail. Don't just assume that you know (or should know) the answer, I may not have been clear enough or may have forgotten to mention something.

Accommodations

Illinois State University is an institution and a faculty concerned with helping all of our students feel welcome, and with helping all students learn and develop to their full potential. Any student needing to arrange a reasonable accommodation for a documented disability should contact Disability Concerns at 350 Fell Hall, 438-5853 (voice), 438-8620 (TDD).

Readings:

Required Optional Aron, A. & Aron, E. (2003). Statistics for Psychology, 3rd Ed. New York: Prentice Hall. Textbook's website American Psychological Association. (2001). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (5thEdition.).Washington, DC: Author.