Statistics, tables, graphs, and figures discussed are presented in four steps:

1. Defining it
2. Describing where it should or should not be used.
3. Showing how it is used in a popular magazine or newspaper, academic journal, or in output from SPSS software.
4. Discussing how to interpret its meaning.

"Interpreting Data: A Guide to Understanding Research is a little book that serves its mission well."

Teaching Sociology, Volume 34, 2006

Review by Susanne Morgan, Ithaca College

Interpreting Data is straightforward, and an instructor could use it to devise exercises in locating and analyzing sources. With its companion Research Navigator Guide, this book could be a particularly valuable package for a research methods or statistics course that requires students to find sources, analyze their structure, understand the data presented, and write competently.

Teaching Sociology, Volume 34, 2006

Review by Susanne Morgan, Ithaca College

Introduction.

Definitions.

        Variables.

        Values.

        Independent Variables.

        Dependent Variables.

        Nominal Measured Variables.

        Ordinal Measured Variables.

        Interval and Ratio Measured Variables.

        Hypothesis.

        Population.

        Sample.

        Generalizability.

        Sampling Error.

        Significance Level.

Statistical Analysis Decision Tree.

1. Describing Data.

Definitions.

        Measures of Central Technology.

        Mean.

        Median.

        Mode.

        Standard Deviation.

        Percentiles.

        Frequency Tables.

        Bar Charts or Graphs.

        Histograms.

        Frequency Polygons and Line Graphs.

        Pie Charts.

Data from Popular Publications.

        Pie Chart.

        Bar Graph.

        Line Graph.

        Frequency Tables.

        Other Frequency Tables and Statistics.

Scholarly Article.

        Frequency Tables.

        Descriptive Statistics.

SPSS Output.

        Frequency Table.

        Bar Graph.

        Descriptive Statistics.

Summary of Descriptive Statistics, Tables, and Graphs.

2. Understanding Tables.

Definitions.

        Cross-tabulations or Contingency Tables.

        Rows, Columns, and Cells.

Data from Popular Publications.

        Simple Bivariate Table.

        Multiple Variables Crosstabs.

Scholarly Article.

        Simple Bivariate Table.

        Multivariate Crosstabs.

SPSS Output.

        Bivariate Tables.

        Multivariate Tables.

Summary of Crosstabs or Contigency Tables.

3. Interpreting Relationships.

Definitions.

        Chi Square (x²).

        Pearson r correlation coefficient.

Data from Popular Publications.

Scholarly Article.

        Pearson r Correlations.

        Chi-Square Tests of Significance.

SPSS Output.

        Chi-Square Analysis.

        Pearson r Correlations.

Summary of Correlations.

4. Explaining Mean Differences.

Definitions.

        t-tests.

        Analysis of Variance (ANOVA).

Scholarly Article.

        t-tests.

        Another t-test example.

        ANOVA.

        Another ANOVA example.

SPSS Output.

        Paired Samples t-test.

        Independent Samples t-test.

        ANOVA.

Summary of Means.

5. Reading Regressions.

Definitions.

        Multiple Correlation (R).

        Regression Coefficients: B and Beta.

Scholarly Article.

        The Enter Method Regression Model.

        The Stepwise Method Regression.

SPSS Output.

        The Enter Method Regression Model.

        The Stepwise Method Regression.

Summary of Regressions.